Natural Disasters

Over the past 21 years, Haiti has been hit by 40 cyclones, thunderstorms and heavy rains. Each year on average two events cause flooding and landslides with serious consequences for people and their livelihoods.

Haiti is more vulnerable than many nations because of the number of people living in poverty. Climate change means that these phenomena could increase in occurrence and severity.

For this Earth Day it is especially important we focus on the world's top priorities. In September, all 193 governments will meet at the UN to set targets for the world for the next 15 years in what is explicitly labeled "Sustainable Development Goals." So, it is worth looking at what we should do first. At my think tank, the Copenhagen Consensus, we've asked 60 teams of top economists including several Nobel laureates to evaluate the economic, social and environmental costs and benefits of the targets, so we can pick the best ones. Here is what we should do in environment.

In Wall Street Journal, Matt Ridley asks how rich countries can best help poor ones and identifies five goals with great bang for the buck based on the output from Post-2015 Consensus so far.

Tifón Haiyan y cambio climático: el enfoque equivocado. Cuando un huracán golpea la rica Florida, hace un daño significativo, pero mata a pocas personas. Cuando golpea países pobres destruye la economía y mata a decenas de miles.

2013-11-30  BJORN LOMBORG 

La Prensa, Panama. 

El reciente tifón Haiyan fue terrible. Azotó a las Filipinas, matando a miles de personas, debido a la pobreza: viviendas precarias que fueron arrasadas, refugios inadecuados y mala planificación.

2013-10-15 En af de mest vedholdende påstande i klimadebatten er, at den globale opvarmning fører til mere ekstreme vejrforhold. Vi hører det ustandseligt fra grønne grupper, og selv respektable medier som Scientific American er bukket under for presset til generelt at erklære, at »ekstreme vejrforhold er et produkt af klimaændringer.« Men alarmisme og panik er sjældent den bedste måde at opnå gode politikker på.

2013-10-14 FOR the past half century, a fundamental debate has raged between optimists and pessimists over the state of the world. Pessimists build their case on overpopulation, starvation and depletion of resources. Optimists stand for the infallibility of the market economy. Wouldn't it be nice to remove the darkened or rose-tinted spectacles for once, and try to quantify how the world really has done and will do in future? I asked some of the world's leading economists to do just that. The result is a groundbreaking book, How Much Have Global Problems Cost The World?

2013-09-15 One of the most persistent claims in the climate debate is that global warming leads to more extreme weather. Green groups and even such respectable outlets as Scientific American declare that “extreme weather is a product of climate change.”  And the meme seems irresistible as a political shortcut to action.

2013-05-23

Bjørn Lomborg was interviewed on Piers Morgan Live, CNN's primetime talk show, discussing the alleged connection between climate change and extreme weather. 

He also issued a statement about the claims that global warming was to blame for the Oklahoma tornadoes:

Numbers show downward trend even as temperatures have increased

2013-04-08 Por Bjørn Lomborg

Las inundaciones ocurridas la semana pasada en Buenos Aires y La Plata son una tragedia. Muchos dicen que es por el calentamiento global y exigen que se reduzcan las emisiones de CO2. Están equivocados. Usan al clima como el chivo expiatorio. Y desconocen políticas mucho mejores. Este mal consejo causará más muertes y más destrucción en el futuro. (...)