Air Pollution

Politicians across the world routinely promise unprecedented reductions of carbon emissions but make little mention of the cost, often covering with vivid projections of green jobs. Yet the economic damage these policies would do is much greater than what most voters would tolerate, while the climate benefits are smaller than many would imagine.

Young people across the world are terrified of climate change, according to a forthcoming Lancet study. More than 45% of people 16 to 25 in the 10 countries surveyed are so worried that it affects their daily life and functioning. Almost half of young Americans believe “humanity is doomed,” and two-thirds think “the future is frightening.” But while climate change is a problem, panic is unwarranted.

Cooking over an open fire or with traditional stoves is widely practiced in Ghana, but these common methods carry serious risks. Emissions caused by the use of solid fuels such as wood and charcoal are one of the leading health concerns in many developing countries.

Globally, over 1.6 million people died in 2017 from diseases related to poor household air quality, and in Ghana, 10,000 lives are lost to this cause annually.

One of the most overlooked development success stories right now is that the population without access to electricity has fallen below 1 billion for the first time since records began. New data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that in 2017, 120 million people gained access to electricity, meaning more people today have access to electricity than ever before.

It’s very easy to form the view that the modern world is coming apart. We are constantly confronted with an onslaught of negativity: frightening headlines, alarming research findings, and miserable statistics.

There are indeed many things on the planet that we should be greatly concerned about. But fixating on horror stories means that we miss the bigger picture.

Air pollution kills more than 16 lakh people in India every year — more than smoking, malnutrition or even a lack of water and sanitation. And while the toxic soup of outdoor air pollution over Delhi and many other cities rightly gets a lot of attention, indoor air pollution from household cooking and heating with biomass fuels kills almost as many, or about eight lakh people, every year. A majority of rural households continue to use biomass (such as wood and cow dung) as their primary cooking fuel.

Humans are partial to bad news. Media outlets reflect and shape this preference, feeding us woe and panic. Long, slow, positive trends don’t make it to the front page or to water-cooler conversations. So we develop peculiar misperceptions, especially the idea that a preponderance of things are going wrong.

Wie lässt sich die Erderwärmung bekämpfen? Dr. Bjørn Lomborg, Autor von „Apocalypse No!”, und Dr. Jörg Zeuner, Chefvolkswirt der KfW Bankengruppe, diskutieren über den richtigen Umgang mit dem Klimawandel und eine effektive Entwicklungshilfe.

Entre las opciones de gasto para los gobiernos de las naciones más pobres, poner en marcha la revolución tecnológica puede parecer al principio una prioridad menor. Si lo comparamos con la situación crítica de la infraestructura, la atención sanitaria o las escuelas, el acceso digital mejorado y la reducción del tiempo de espera para obtener certificados de nacimiento se sienten como lujos que deberían postergarse, o quizás dejarse a la iniciativa privada. Pero hay razones para reconsiderar esto.

When famine strikes, governments and international donors step in with life-saving aid. And rich countries give more than $130 billion each year not only to feed the starving, but also to build crucial infrastructure and reduce gaps in access to education, health care, and clean water and sanitation worldwide.

All of this is vitally important. But one of the most powerful investments the development community could make is not in today’s problems, but in research that will address tomorrow’s challenges.