The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World

Lomborg, Bjorn

ISBN 10: 0521010683 / ISBN 13: 9780521010689

Published by Cambridge University Press, 2001

About this Item

xxiii, 515, 173 text figs. . PB. Fine. This work questions the common belief that the environment is steadily deteriorating. A former Greenpeace member, Lomborg criticizes environmental groups for misusing scientific data and instead uses reliable statistics from respected research institutions to assess major global environmental issues. Written in clear, accessible language and supported by extensive references, the book argues that the situation is less dire than often portrayed and calls for rational, evidence-based prioritization of resources to address genuine environmental problems. [9780521010689].

Seller Inventory # S63660

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication Date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521010683
• ISBN 13: 9780521010689
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION,ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

About this title

Synopsis

Bjørn Lomborg, a former member of Greenpeace, challenges widely held beliefs that the world environmental situation is getting worse and worse in his new book, The Skeptical Environmentalist. Using statistical information from internationally recognized research institutes, Lomborg systematically examines a range of major environmental issues that feature prominently in headline news around the world, including pollution, biodiversity, fear of chemicals, and the greenhouse effect, and documents that the world has actually improved. He supports his arguments with over 2500 footnotes, allowing readers to check his sources. Lomborg criticizes the way many environmental organizations make selective and misleading use of scientific evidence and argues that we are making decisions about the use of our limited resources based on inaccurate or incomplete information. Concluding that there are more reasons for optimism than pessimism, he stresses the need for clear-headed prioritization of resources to tackle real, not imagined, problems. The Skeptical Environmentalist offers readers a non-partisan evaluation that serves as a useful corrective to the more alarmist accounts favored by campaign groups and the media. Bjørn Lomborg is an associate professor of statistics in the Department of Political Science at the University of Aarhus. When he started to investigate the statistics behind the current gloomy view of the environment, he was genuinely surprised. He published four lengthy articles in the leading Danish newspaper, including statistics documenting an ever-improving world, and unleashed the biggest post-war debate with more than 400 articles in all the major papers. Since then, Lomborg has been a frequent participant in the European debate on environmentalism on television, radio, and in newspapers.

About the Author

Bjørn Lomborg is an Associate Professor of Statistics in the Department of Political Science, University of Aarhus, Denmark. He has published in international journals in the fields of game theory and computer simulations. He has given invited lectures on the subjects discussed in The Skeptical Environmentalist in leading universities in North America and Europe following the success of the original Danish edition which has had a significant impact on the terms of the environmental debate within Scandinavia.