Bjørn Lomborg

Now, we're still not there from what it was in 1500.

So we've still cut down the world a lot.

But we're actually making a much greener world.

Again, not because we really cared or thought about it, but just sort of a side effect of what we're doing.

I think the crucial bit to remember is...

when you're poor and you worry about what's going to happen the next day, this is just not your main issue.

Am I killing too many large animals in the world?

But when you're rich and you can actually sit in a podcast in a convenient place in Austin, you can also start thinking about this.

So one of the crucial bits, I think, if we want to get the rest of the world to care about the environment, care about climate, care about all these other issues,

We really need to get them out of poverty first.

And it's a simple point that we often forget.

First of all, my editor actually hated the subtitle because it gives away the whole book.

It basically tells you what the book tries to make.

I think that's exactly what it should be.

It's about getting this conversation out in the public sphere.

So the worst thing that climate change can do is like the worst thing that anything can do is that it wipes out everything and we all die.

So it's not like, you know, if you're just looking for worst case outcomes, you know, anything can get to the worst case outcome.

Imagine if we, what's the worst thing that could happen from HIV?

It breaks down one or more African states because we don't fix it.

And then you get sort of biological warfare and terrorism, throw that in the mix, and then you get someone who makes a virus and kills the whole world.