First, he is not a reflexive environmentalist. Besides his status as one of the world’s richest people and most generous philanthropists, two things make his endorsement of them compelling. Mr Gates is hardly the first to advance these proposals. But the linchpin of his argument is the introduction of a meaningful carbon price, to account for the externalities involved in using dirty energy. There should be more green procurement (a path China has followed with solar panels and electric cars) and greener regulation. He wants governments to increase funding for climate research fivefold in a decade disclosing his own investments, he urges them to bet on such promising but risky fields as advanced nuclear power. But given the pressing need to decarbonise the global economy, says Mr Gates, “we have to force an unnaturally speedy transition”. Previous energy transitions-for instance, from coal to oil-took many decades. If humanity is to win the great race between development and degradation, he writes, green innovation must accelerate. His new book, “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster”, is devoted to reconciling the legitimate aspirations of billions of people for economic advancement with the environmental harm that results. He is just as concerned about global warming as are those thrillionaires, but in his view there is only one planet that matters. By contrast, Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, has his feet firmly planted on the ground.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |