An economist's 'answer to everything.' Hint: It takes nature

Economist Partha Dasgupta takes issue with our failure to account for the cost of Earth's destruction

Partha Dasgupta is a Cambridge University economist who has criticized politicians and economists for not including the cost of Earth's destruction when tallying things like economic growth.

This engaging video featuring Dasgupta and Danish actor Alexander Skarsgård boils his 600-page treatise down to five minutes.

Stanford University biologist Paul Ehrlich says "watching this is likely your mind's best use of five minutes this week."

The bottom line: We have to start accounting for Nature.

Not doing so, Skarsgård notes in the video, is like using only the goals your team scores to assess a soccer game. You might have an impressive number, but you have no idea if your team is winning or losing.

Worth your time....

Aerial view of several rows of solar panels in a green field

COP31 host Türkiye is home to one of Europe's largest solar farms. Why can’t it kick coal?

As Türkiye prepares to host the UN climate summit, one critic describes the country's climate targets and policies as “critically insufficient”.
A female politician at a table speaker with other global leaders

U.N. climate talks begin today. Here are 3 things to know

Countries are gathering in Antalya, Turkey, for the annual U.N. climate conference. Many are frustrated with the lack of focus on fossil fuels, the main driver of climate change.
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The rise and fall of the term ‘carbon neutral’ — and where we go from here

New EU rules have put strict conditions on offset-based green claims. Caroline Garland speaks to Dan Morrell, who helped put ‘carbon neutral’ into the dictionary – and he says good riddance – but warns brands not to fall silent
"The Climate Has No Borders". Illustrative rendering for the International Climate Summit
Credit: urbanbuzz/BigStock Photo ID: 446265299

What to expect from COP31 Antalya

Droughts, floods and extreme heat are upping the pressure on countries to move beyond pledges and take concrete action.

Net zero home, sustainable and resources efficient residential house outline diagram.
Credit: VectorMine/BigStock Photo ID: 439038824

Net zero 'unstoppable' at COP31, clean energy chief says

Although the world is unlikely to achieve some climate goals, electrification and the renewable energy rollout is accelerating.

A worker collects garbage from the sea on Eminonu beach in Istanbul, Turkey.
Credit: NMTD/BigStock Photo ID: 340763788

How Europe’s trash ends up on Turkey’s beaches

Turkey wants to promote its “zero waste” program while hosting the U.N.’s global climate conference. Its own recycling industry is oozing plastic.
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