Inclusive Wealth Index aka: markets are not god-given-formulas

The UNEP recently launched a new report/index - the Inclusive Wealth Index (IWI).

The IWI looks beyond the traditional economic and development yardsticks of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Human Development Index (HDI) to include a full range of assets such as manufactured, human and natural capital, showing the true state of a nation's wealth and the sustainability of its growth.  It aims to show whether we are building or destroying the productive base that supports our well being.

Some country examples:

Australia has an annual GDP growth rate of 2.2% over the last 19 years, but an IWI of only 0.1%.

China – GDP 9.6%, IWI 2.1%

US – GDP 1.8%, IWI 0.7%

Wedging the emissions gap

Allright, so it's not the title I would have chosen but Blok, Höhne, van der Leun & Harrison in Nature Climate Change have quantified 21 initiatives that would achieve an additional 10 Gt CO2e mitigation -  hence ‘wedging the emissions gap’.

Below is a potted cut and paste job, I recommend going to:  http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate1602.html for the full (and not long) paper