David Runnalls the Canadian writer and environment columnist, former Board member of IUCN-the World Conservation Union, and current Distinguished Fellow with IISD, has published an article in The Globe and Mail titled ‘Roasted, toasted, fried and grilled’: climate-change talk from an unlikely source ‘. Runnalls states “ This past little while has seen some statements from unlikely sources about the critical economic importance of dealing quickly with climate change. President Barack Obama led off the batting with his inaugural address, calling on Americans to take the lead in developing the technologies necessary for the emerging low-carbon economy. He pointed to the drought and Hurricane Sandy as the most recent evidence that our climate is changing for the worse. But the most startling statements came from the heads of those bastions of economic orthodoxy: the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. …[head of the IMF Ms. Lagarde] said: “Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled.” Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank, went so far as to insist that climate change be at the top of the Davos agenda, along with finance and growth, “because global warming imperils all of the development gains we have made.” …These statements are not from the head of Greenpeace or from David Suzuki. They come from the heads of the bulwarks of the international financial system. For years, the IMF has resisted straying into the realm of environment and finance, viewing it as a side issue best left to international environmental organizations. And while the World Bank has invested in low-carbon futures and has been active in climate talks, the issue has not been raised to the top of its agenda. Until now. Climate change as the main economic discussion point at the annual meeting of the rich and famous leaders of governments and multinational enterprises?”  Inspired by David Runnalls, The Globe and Mail ow.ly/hMwGA Image source CIGI ow.ly/hMwF2 Roasted, toasted, fried and grilled (February 27 2013)

David Runnalls the Canadian writer and environment columnist, former Board member of IUCN-the World Conservation Union, and current Distinguished Fellow with IISD, has published an article in The Globe and Mail titled ‘Roasted, toasted, fried and grilled’: climate-change talk from an unlikely source ‘. Runnalls states “ This past little while has seen some statements from unlikely sources about the critical economic importance of dealing quickly with climate change. President Barack Obama led off the batting with his inaugural address, calling on Americans to take the lead in developing the technologies necessary for the emerging low-carbon economy. He pointed to the drought and Hurricane Sandy as the most recent evidence that our climate is changing for the worse. But the most startling statements came from the heads of those bastions of economic orthodoxy: the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. …[head of the IMF Ms. Lagarde] said: “Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled.” Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank, went so far as to insist that climate change be at the top of the Davos agenda, along with finance and growth, “because global warming imperils all of the development gains we have made.” …These statements are not from the head of Greenpeace or from David Suzuki. They come from the heads of the bulwarks of the international financial system. For years, the IMF has resisted straying into the realm of environment and finance, viewing it as a side issue best left to international environmental organizations. And while the World Bank has invested in low-carbon futures and has been active in climate talks, the issue has not been raised to the top of its agenda. Until now. Climate change as the main economic discussion point at the annual meeting of the rich and famous leaders of governments and multinational enterprises?”

 

Inspired by David Runnalls, The Globe and Mail ow.ly/hMwGA Image source CIGI ow.ly/hMwF2