Maybe it’s because I’ve shifted my focus away from the current dire environmental, social, economic, and polictical scene facing us, toward the world that is already beginning to emerge (like the phoenix from the ashes), but I’m running across a lot more encouraging–even exciting–news items recently. I saw something today that I had to share with you. I was shocked to see such a daring, foreward-thinking, progressive, big-picture idea being implented.

Gordon Brown, the new British Prime Minister, has just instructed his ministers that in the future they must take into account the true economic cost of climate change damage when they make all policy and investment decisions regarding transportation, construction, housing, planning and energy. The so-called “shadow price for carbon,” representing the cost to society of environmental damage, will increase annually for the next 30 years. Hopefully, this will allow them to meet the commitment to stabalize carbon emissions within a recommended level.

They have realized that the cost of addressing the climate change now will be cheaper than doing so later. The result is that carbon-free techologies have been given a boost. Using the new approach to pricing, clean technologies will now become relative less expensive than polluting technologies.

Good for you, Gordon Brown!