As with most issues, there are many diverse opinions. There are some people who still doubt the existence of climate change (despite the mounting scientific evidence). There are also some people who maintain an anti-regulation approach in response to climate change and who argue that the market is the best place to create change. However, a counter argument is that, to date, ‘the market’ has not addressed the issue and that is why the absence of regulation has led to the environmental problems we now have. Perhaps ‘self interest’ left to run rampant has caused many of our problems?

The economics-based theories discussed in this chapter (often adopted by free market advocates) arguably do not provide great hope for addressing climate change. These theories embrace self-interest as a central assumption. But, quests towards sustainable ecological development require people, and organisations, to consider the interests of future generations, rather than simply their own wealth, when making investment and consumption decisions. In this regard we can consider a frequently used definition of sustainable development, this being:

…development that meets the needs of the present world without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (World Commission of Environment and Development, 1987)

Related to the above point, a further and perhaps somewhat controversial point is whether university economics and finance schools should continue to teach students that ‘self-interest’