Taking Nature Into Account

Indicators used to direct ecomonic policy (GDP, national income, etc.) are based on a number of factors ß but nowhere in their calculation is there an acknowledgement of the degradation of natural resources. The numbers may look good, but continued deterioration of the environment is leading us closer to crises; meanwhile, policymakers and the public are basing decisions on dangerously incomplete information. In Taking Nature into Account, a number of the world's leading experts make the ethical, historical, economic, and ecological arguments for including environmental factors when measuring fiscal health. Initiated by the Club of Rome (an international group of influential businesspeople, statesmen, and scientists), and written in cooperation with the World Wide Fund for Nature, the report reviews existing methodologies and makes recommendations for adjusting the way we think about and measure the economy.

Wouter van Dieren, a member of the Club of Rome, is a pioneer in investigating the connections between the environment and the economy. He is Director of the Institute for Environment and Systems Analysis in the Netherlands.