The Age of Green Economics

In the run-up to the December 2007 Bali talks, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced that we have entered a new historical era: "We have witnessed three economic transformations in the past century. First came the Industrial Revolution, then the technology revolution, then our modern era of globalization. We stand at the threshold of another great change: the age of green economics." According to Ki-moon, capitalism can solve the crisis it has created by investing in alternative energy, thereby generating huge profits and millions of jobs. "Handled correctly, our fight against global warming could set the stage for an eco-friendly transformation of the global economy -- one that spurs growth and development rather than crimps it, as many nations fear."