ABSTRACT
The clear message from studying the science of the enhanced Greenhouse Effect is that a substantial change in atmospheric chemistry is now taking place due to human activity. This chapter aims to reflect upon some of the implications arising from the preceding analysis for economic inquiry and more generally the conduct of science and policy in the context of the enhanced Greenhouse Effect. It covers the role of scientific information in relation to economic and political power; how economic theory has been characterising and reinforcing a specific and narrow view of decision-making; the way in which this approach has affected the policy process as evidenced by IPCC reports; and the need for changing the approach being taken to the study of economics both in terms of uncertainty and in relation to value theory. Scientific discovery and the resulting delivery of information are largely presented as ‘objective’ processes so that ‘decision-makers’ can receive neutral information.
