Global Warming: An Opportunity for Greatness

Publication Date: August 2008

Publisher: Center for Global Development

Author(s): David Wheeler

Research Area: Environment

Keywords: Environment; Climate Change; Presidential transition

Type: Brief

Coverage: United States

Abstract:

This White House and the World Brief presents the key facts and recommendations drawn from Chapter Two of The White House and the World: A Global Development Agenda for the Next U.S. President.

The next president can secure a place in history by mobilizing America to confront climate change, while starting a clean energy revolution that will strengthen American security and create the next wave of economic growth. The president should seize this opportunity because climate change presents a mortal threat: left unchecked, global warming will undermine the hard-won achievements of developing countries, inflict severe damage on the United States and other rich nations, and destabilize so many societies that the international system will be threatened. CGD senior fellow David Wheeler shows how to turn the threat into an opportunity for greatness.