How to save 16,000 children’s lives

Our current climate conversation embodies two blatantly contradictory claims. On one side, experts warn that promised climate policies will be economically crippling. In a new report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) states that achieving net-zero in 2050 will likely be “the greatest challenge humankind has ever faced.” That is a high bar, surpassing World War II, the black plague and Covid.

Despite having a substantial public budget, the Philippines does not have enough funds to do everything its citizens would like. It, therefore, has to prioritize among many worthy opportunities.

In every country, the main role of the government is to prioritize policy options and investments. Hopefully, these policies will deliver the greatest benefit for each peso spent. These could well be effective investments in health such as rotavirus vaccinations, or in education such as structured teacher plans.

The Pope derides those who have “blind faith” in technological advances as a solution to climate change. Instead, his encyclical declares that the world must stop consuming so much. That, he says, will help the poor people who stand to be affected most by global warming. That is troubling, because technical innovation is exactly what we need more of.