ABSTRACT
In certain economic theories absurdities abound which can make a nonsense of real life. Take the recent Kobe earthquake in Japan as an example. According to WWF, statisticians have calculated that Japan will actually make a profit from the earthquake: 5500 people were killed, 33,000 were injured and the bill for damage has already exceeded US$ 110 billion. However, the income generated by the rescue and clean up efforts means that calculations based on GDP show a slightly positive result on balance for the ‘well-being’ of Japan. This is quite astonishing and renders some economic theory entirely meaningless. It is also a very vivid illustration of why environmental education should be an integral part of the learning process.
