Hurricane Sandy, one of many recent climate change weather events, will cost over $100 billion. And the combined external costs of coal and oil (money paid by governments, families, health and school systems) in the U.S. come to more than the 2012 federal deficit of $1.1 trillion.
Environmental Debt: The Hidden Costs of a Changing Global Economy connects the financial and environmental crises: both causes and solutions. Amy Larkin shows how the costs of climate change, extreme weather and pollution combine to wreak havoc on the economy as well as the earth, creating what she calls, “environmental debt.” She contends that addressing fiscal problems while simultaneously creating environmental ones is a recipe for financial disaster.
In ENVIRONMENTAL DEBT: The Hidden Costs of A Changing Global Economy (Palgrave Macmillan; Hardcover; ISBN 978-137-27855-5; $27.00; Pub date June 25th 2013), Larkin points to numerous corporate initiatives that demonstrate courage and foresight and point the way to a secure global economy. In fact, she contends that many corporations are way ahead of government when it comes to understanding and addressing the real costs of climate change and pollution. She proposes a new policy framework for 21st century commerce that includes three pillars to empower profitable business: business that coexists with the environment. She also outlines some of the most exciting innovation in the lab, the executive suite, the halls of Congress and the patent office. The book presents complex ideas in easy-to-read prose and is a must-read for anyone interested in policy, business, the environment or economics.
About Amy Larkin
Amy Larkin was the Solutions Director for Greenpeace USA for six years until 2011 where her work received the prestigious 2011 Roy Award from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Since 2012, she has consulted for Greenpeace International, The Consumer Goods Forum (a consortium of 400 of the world’s leading consumer brands and retailers), and the Agricultural Sustainability Institute at UC/Davis.
She is the Chair of the Advisory Board of Biomimicry NYC, a Strategic Advisor to RESOLVE, and is Chair of the Board of the ARChive of Contemporary Music.
Amy Larkin has been featured in The Washington Post, New York Times, Newsweek, Reuters, Bloomberg, and Greenbiz, appeared on NPR and CNBC, etc. She lives in New York City.