An outspoken global actor in the grand theater of climate policy, New York has long insisted the transition to green energy would be cheap and straightforward. 

As 2026 begins, many of us have been taking stock of the year behind us and setting intentions for the one ahead.

For the world’s poorest, this was the year when the United Nations’ over-ambitious plan to solve every pressing global problem fell apart.

We should vow to be smarter, and do better, this year.

Twelve projects costing US$35 billion could do much more good than the $10 trillion the UN is spending on its official development goals

Twelve projects costing US$35 billion could do much more good than the $10 trillion the UN is spending on its official development goals

The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season ended on Sunday, and not a single hurricane made landfall in the continental U.S. this year. This is the first such quiet year since 2015; an average of around two hurricanes strike the U.S. mainland annually. You’d think this would be cause for celebration—or at least curiosity about what role, if any, global warming played. Instead there has been resounding silence.

Western politicians and climate activists are using the jungle backdrop of the poor Amazon city of Belém, Brazil for photo ops as they lecture the world on carbon emissions at the COP 30 climate summit this week.

The only bright spot for the environment is the rapid expansion of state-of-the-art nuclear power.
 

Bjorn Lomborg is a Danish political scientist, author, and president of the Copenhagen Consensus. A former Greenpeace member turned pragmatic environmentalist, he argues that fighting poverty and improving global well-being should take priority over extreme climate policies. His latest book, Best Things First, continues his mission to make the world’s resources work smarter—not louder. Follow him on X: @BjornLomborg

As politicians prepare to jet into Belém, Brazil, for the 30th annual UN climate meeting, philanthropist Bill Gates has provided a straightforward insight: climate summits like COP30 should prioritize what truly improves human lives, and not just chase reductions in emissions or temperatures. His point is both refreshingly overdue and, frankly, obvious common sense.

Copenhagen Consensus President Bjorn Lomborg discusses the effects of Hurricane Melissa and global warming statistics on ‘Varney & Co.’