Last night the ROM held a debate in honor of Nature week. Crowds came out en-mass to watch Thomas Homer-Dixon, Gregg Easterbrook and Terry Anderson hash out the details on no less than How to Save the World. Though the three environmental experts had decidedly different viewpoints, the message was clear; the solution to the environmental problems the world faces must be resolved through market incentives using the tools of a capitalist economy.
Now maybe it’s just me, but isn’t the capitalist economy what got us all into this mess to begin with? True, the market has successfully resolved previous environmental catastrophes, like acid rain, through incentives and legislation. But the fact remains that the discipline of economics views the environment as an externality. There is no method of accounting for the financial value of a rainforest or a riverbed outside of their commoditization. According to a capitalist economy, nature left alone is of no value at all.
There is, however, one instance where the markets might be used to create incentives to go green. Polluter-pays legislation, though often unfavorable with corporate America, makes polluting unaffordable. And when it comes to corporate accountability, nothing speaks louder than the bottom line. As my good friend Dr. Bob Murphy likes to say, there is no conservation without legislation. Maybe it’s time our political figures step up to the plate, like President Obama recently did, and make changes that actually matter.
-Elaisha Stokes, Producer, Schad Gallery of Biodiversity
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