Measuring the Next Global Development Goals

As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day and the birth of modern environmentalism, we should pause to give each other a virtual high five for the impressive environmental progress society has accomplished during this span. We should also think about the ways we can make the next 50 years far more effective.

The participation rate in Haitian elections is low. In last October’s election, less than one-quarter of eligible voters participated.

The process is long and complex, leaving opportunities for error and fraud, while the costs of holding an election have climbed more than 400% in 25 years.

With apparent broad public support, electronic voting has been suggested as one way of reducing the cost, cutting the opportunities for error and fraud, and re-establishing public trust.

Recent weather disasters — flooding across Asia and hurricanes hitting the US and Caribbean — have only increased the volume from commentators and politicians who tell us: “This is what climate change looks like.” 

The destruction, they say, provides added reason to double down on the Paris Agreement, the climate pact adopted in December 2015. Those who don’t think this way are haters and wreckers, no different from Donald Trump, who cancelled US involvement in the treaty.