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New benefit-cost research every week
In October alone we have released 19 research papers covering topics such as Climate Change, Trade, Biodiversity, and Population and Demography. The research has already sparked a global debate on the smartest targets for the post-2015 agenda. If you want to get the next results first, sign up here.
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Climate policies may be worse than useless
 The UN Climate Panel came out with their Synthesis Report.
Lomborg wrote in The Telegraph that this is an opportunity to think smartly and find a realistic way to fix global warming. But we need to stop the hype:
Global warming pales when compared to many other global problems. While the WHO estimates 250,000 annual deaths from global warming in 30 years, 4.3 million die right now each year from indoor air pollution, 800 million are starving, and 2.5 billion live in poverty and lack clean water and sanitation.
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Trade makes each poor $1,000 richer each year
 Getting a successful Doha round on free trade could be the best target ever. Kym Anderson finds it will make the world $11 trillion richer each year in 2030, and lift a staggering 160 million more people out of extreme poverty.
For every dollar spent, we will do at least $2,000 of good.
So if the economic case is clear, why isn’t it implemented? Because the anticipated losses in jobs and wealth are very obvious and concentrated, whereas the gains are thinly spread and less-easily identifiable.
  
The findings were reported around the globe, e.g. in India's Economic Times, The Japan Times or Germany's Die Welt.
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Climate change needs fixing
Lead by Isabel Galiana, the research papers show better ways to fix our currently stuck climate policies.
They find that investing 0.5% of GDP into green energy research and development funded by a low and slowly rising carbon tax is the smartest climate target, doing perhaps $11 of good for each dollar spent.
 
Instead, as reported on Forbes or BBC World News Hour, we should stay clear of the 2°C target, which will cost more than the benefit we'll achieve. |
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Population and demography
 Hans-Peter Kohler and Jere R. Behrman from University of Pennsylvania show that providing access to unmet sexual and reproductive health needs will result in 640,000 fewer newborn deaths, 150,000 fewer maternal deaths and 600,000 fewer children who lose their mother.
With fewer kids, parents can afford better schooling, while society benefits from fewer costs from kids and more income from a larger working population.
As reported by Britain's The Telegraph, the total benefit is $120 for each dollar spent. |
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Biodiversity
Economists Anil Markandya, Luke Brander and Alistair McVittie argue that reducing the loss of coral reefs, wetlands and forests are worthwhile targets.
As reported in the Huffington Post, stemming the loss of coral reefs by 50% will return at least $24 for every dollar spent.
Interestingly, the reports find that establishing protected areas is not an effective way to go about preserving forests. |
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Prioritizing The World
This month we have released the latest book edited by Bjorn Lomborg. It paints the best targets in green -- and the poorest in red.
"In 2000, the Millennium Development Goals set a few, highly effective targets for the world, e.g. halve the proportion of poor and hungry and reduce childhood mortality by two-thirds. The goals have been a huge success. Now, the UN and the world is to decide which new goals will take over in 2015.
The UN s Open Working Group has proposed 169 targets. But we need to know which are most effective. Copenhagen Consensus has asked 30+ of the world’s top economists to highlight phenomenal, good, fair and poor targets, weighing up the social, environmental and economic benefits and costs."
Click here to purchase on Amazon.
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Foreign Affairs
 The November/December 2014 issue of Foreign Affairs features an 8 page article by Dr. Lomborg. “Promises to Keep: Crafting Better Development Goalsâ€, highlights the work of the Post-2015 Consensus and the valuable knowledge the project is injecting into the post-2015 debate. You can read the entire article on foreignaffairs.com
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World Food Day 2014
Thursday October 16th celebrated World Food Day, the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945.
In honor of World Food Day, Times of India published Dr. Lomborg's op-ed entitled “Feeding people is smart: It's the best investment to do good in the world.†The article argues how tackling nutrition is one of the world's most cost-effective solutions, with massive benefits for a tiny price tag.
You can also watch our video Fighting Hunger and Malnutrition which was featured on the front page of the Economic Times’ website during World Food Day.
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