Sparring Opinions: Climate Change

World leaders met today at the United Nations summit to begin developing international policy on curbing emissions and preventing irreversible climate change. In today's Sparring Opinions we're comparing two op-eds that offer different views on whether the global economy is prepared to make large-scale changes to attain this goal.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown penned an opinion in Newsweek, arguing that the international community must reach a consensus by the end of the year, when leaders gather in Copenhagen to develop a formal plan. "If we miss this opportunity, there will be no second chance sometime in the future," he says, adding:

"Some argue that, amid demanding economic conditions, our resolve to meet environmental commitments should weaken, that the costs are too high. In fact, the opposite is true; a strong agreement in Copenhagen is essential for global economic recovery. For that recovery depends on the investment that an agreement will unleash. The economies that embrace the green revolution earliest will reap the greatest rewards."

Overhauling our current energy consumption will take too great a toll on world economies to be worthwhile in the short-term, writes Stephen F. Hayward, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, in the Wall Street Journal:

"the idea that we must act now to avoid bigger costs down the road just doesn't hold water. Simply put, the world of tomorrow will be considerably richer than today—and much better able to absorb the costs of climate change. Yale University's William Nordhaus, one of the top climate economists, thinks it is sound to allow about half or more of the prospective damage from climate change to simply occur—since the world 40 or 60 years from now will be in a much better situation to handle the economic effects."

Which of these op-eds do you find most insightful? Make your voice heard -- add your review to these two stories:

• Copenhagen or bust - Newsweek

• Alternatives are simply too expensive - Wall Street Journal

-- Derek Hawkins