AMES, Iowa -- The author of "The Skeptical Environmentalist" and "Cool It" will speak at Iowa State University next week as part of the World Affairs Series. Bjorn Lomborg will speak on "The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming" at 6 p.m., Wednesday, April 16 in the Memorial Union Sun Room. The lecture is free and open to the public.
A controversial figure in the environmental debate for questioning the priority given to solving global climate change, Lomborg argues that resources should first be focused on more immediate concerns, such as fighting malaria and HIV/AIDS, and assuring a safe, fresh water supply. The United Kingdom's Guardian newspaper recently named him one of the "50 people who could save the planet."
As the organizer of the 2004 Copenhagen Consensus, Lomborg brought together internationally recognized economists to prioritize opportunities to solve the world's biggest problems. This event and a subsequent conference he organized for United Nations ambassadors resulted in his publications, "How to Spend $50 Billion to Make the World a Better Place," "Global Crises, Global Solutions," and "Solutions for the World's Biggest Problems."
Lomborg, who earned his doctorate in political science from the University of Copenhagen, is director of the Copenhagen Consensus Center and an adjunct professor at the Copenhagen Business School.
The lecture is cosponsored by Iowa State's Bioethics Program, economics department, World Affairs Series and the Committee on Lectures, which is funded by the Government of the Student Body.