Food for Thought
“Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.”
Albert Einstein
Tag Archives: economics
How not to end world hunger
Food prices are rising. Again. And the scramble is on to figure out who to blame: climate change? Biofuels? Good old capitalist greed? Just this morning the New York Times published a discussion panel on the issue: “Is the world … Continue reading
Who pays for overfishing? Poor people in Africa (and elsewhere)
[Based in part on my evaluation for the Faculty of 1000, accessible only by subscription I'm afraid] The pervasive detrimental impacts of overfishing on marine life and ecosystems have been widely publicized in recent years, ratcheting up calls for stricter … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity, Oceans, Science, Sustainability
Tagged economics, fishing, food, population, research
2 Comments
How to solve global warming
It’s familiar dilemma: after you’ve changed out your old incandescent light bulbs, got serious about recycling, started eating local farm produce, switched to reusable shopping bags, maybe even bought a Prius, one comes to the uncomfortable question: How are we … Continue reading
The promise of biofuels: a lot of hot air?
I suppose we should have known it was all too good to be true. What could be wrong with using plants for fuel? They take carbon out of the air, so burning them up in the tank just puts it … Continue reading
To ski or not to ski, that is a question
A question that may soon be answered for us, at least in the southeastern USA. Now this may seem like a frivolous question (certainly not, you might argue, worthy of perverting Shakespeare), and in the grand scheme of things, yes, it … Continue reading
Biofuels and sustainability: the pros weigh in
The Ecological Society of America, the Nation’s leading body of professional ecological scientists (of which I am a proud member), has released a position statement on biofuels sustainability. The full text is here. Because these are highly important issues and … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity, Politics, Sustainability
Tagged climate, economics, energy, restoration
3 Comments
Declining ocean health: It’s the economy, stupid
I know, I used the same subtitle for another recent post. But I’m not recycling titles out of laziness — well, not entirely anyway. I do so here to highlight the simple, yet perversely (and perhaps intentionally) misunderstood theme whose centrality … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity, Oceans, Politics, Sustainability
Tagged economics, fishing, food, natural capital, population, research
10 Comments
Ocean biodiversity and the future of seafood: Take 2
In November 2006, fourteen marine scientists and resource economists (including yours truly) led by Boris Worm of Dalhousie University published a paper in Science documenting the functional importance of marine biological diversity and linking it in particular to sustainability of … Continue reading
Can we afford to save the world?
The environmental problems the world faces are daunting. One often hears that the economic costs involved in resource conservation, reforestation, transition to a new energy regime, and so forth are so high that solving them is simply too expensive. But this … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Sustainability
Tagged climate, economics, energy, food, happiness, health, natural capital, population, restoration
1 Comment
Lee Iacocca: plug-in hybrids are the future
It’s official. American cars are no longer king. This past quarter, for the first time in history, a foreign auto maker — Toyota — has surpassed General Motors in sales. The legendary former Chrysler Chairman, Lee Iacocca, brought Chrysler back … Continue reading
