The Climate Casino

Risk, Uncertainty, and Economics for a Warming World

By: William D. Nordhaus

Narrated by: Graham Winton

Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's Summary

The 2018 Nobel laureate for economics analyzes the politics and economics of the central environmental issue of today and points the way to real solutions. 

Climate change is profoundly altering our world in ways that pose major risks to human societies and natural systems. We have entered the Climate Casino and are rolling the global-warming dice, warns economist William Nordhaus. But there is still time to turn around and walk back out of the casino, and in this essential audiobook, the author explains how. 

Bringing together all the important issues surrounding the climate debate, Nordhaus describes the science, economics, and politics involved - and the steps necessary to reduce the perils of global warming. Using language accessible to any concerned citizen and taking care to present different points of view fairly, he discusses the problem from start to finish: from the beginning, where warming originates in our personal energy use, to the end, where societies employ regulations or taxes or subsidies to slow the emissions of gases responsible for climate change. 

Nordhaus offers a new analysis of why earlier policies, such as the Kyoto Protocol, failed to slow carbon dioxide emissions, how new approaches can succeed, and which policy tools will most effectively reduce emissions. In short, he clarifies a defining problem of our times and lays out the next critical steps for slowing the trajectory of global warming.

©2013 William Nordhaus (P)2019 Recorded Books

Great book

William Nordhaus received the 2018 Nobel Prize in economics for his groundbreaking work on modeling climate economics, among the topics he writes about in this book. His work has been used extensively by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and developers of carbon pricing policies. This is a key book for understanding climate policy, impediments, options and ramifications. Great book and well produced audio.

a good comprehensive mostly impartial review

The facts on climate change and possible solutions are very well communicated and explained. However, in the last few chapters the author takes aim at conservative policies numerous times while ignoring thinly veiled socialism's attempt to cloak itself in the climate change issue.

informative but technical

technical look at the economics of climate and making a persuasive case for why we need to act with uncertainty

Suitable for beginners

7 years ago when this book was published it might have offered more interesting insight, but I learned very little new information in 2020. It also barely scratched the surface on a lot of topics. However, I enjoyed the chapter on discounting.

In a way it read like a college student's report on the topic, and in that sense it was very approachable and digestible. I think it would be suitable for an AP environmental science student in high school.

Overall, I do feel more strongly in support of carbon taxation on having read the book, but I think one Economist article would have covered as much, if not more.