OPINION/COMMENTARY

A Responsible Approach to Climate Change We protect the environment because we care about clean air and preserving other species, not mainly for financial reasons. But we also value inexpensive supplies of power and fast and convenient transportation. All interesting and important policy questions involve choosing among competing values. consider climate change. How does human action influence future climates? How willing are we to give up inexpensive fossil fuel energy? Does climate change demand drastic and dramatic action now? If so, at what cost? However well intended, it is naïve and irresponsible to ignore the unavoidable trade-offs. We have limited resources and face many challenges. Here's a simple truth: The money spent to combat climate change is not available to eradicate malaria, killer of 2 million people each year, 90 percent of whom are children under 5. And it takes money to increase female literacy in poor nations -- perhaps the key investment for social progress....