What’s missing in most analyses of the economic impact of AI? The long-term sunk costs of environmental degradation. Given the increasing scale of climate change cost to the world economy, one has to wonder why is this missing?
The average length of time between billion-dollar climate disasters has decreased from 82 days in the 1980s to just 19 days in the last 10 years (2015-2024). In 2025, this average was only 10 days.
The global cost of climate change damage is estimated to be between $1.7 trillion and $3.1 trillion per year by 2050, affecting infrastructure, property, agriculture, and human health. Additionally, extreme weather events linked to climate change have already cost an estimated $2.8 trillion from 2000 to 2019, averaging around $143 billion annually.
Excellent overview.
Thanks, John.
What’s missing in most analyses of the economic impact of AI? The long-term sunk costs of environmental degradation. Given the increasing scale of climate change cost to the world economy, one has to wonder why is this missing?
The average length of time between billion-dollar climate disasters has decreased from 82 days in the 1980s to just 19 days in the last 10 years (2015-2024). In 2025, this average was only 10 days.
The global cost of climate change damage is estimated to be between $1.7 trillion and $3.1 trillion per year by 2050, affecting infrastructure, property, agriculture, and human health. Additionally, extreme weather events linked to climate change have already cost an estimated $2.8 trillion from 2000 to 2019, averaging around $143 billion annually.