*{The environment: let's worry about the right things (07-05-2002) [http://www.iccwbo.org/home/news_archives/2002/stories/environment.asp]} A former Greenpeace activist who has challenged basic arguments of the environmentalist movement featured in a session on the environment. Bjorn Lomborg, author of The Skeptical Environmentalist, asked whether the costs of remedying the damage caused by environmental pollution were higher than the costs of the pollution itself. Mr Lomborg, an associate professor at the University of Aarhus in Denmark, said doomsday predictions were shifting the focus too heavily onto the environment and away from other issues. The session, entitled "A sustainable solution for business and the environment," examined how business is working with its partners to achieve environmentally sound economic growth. The Danish environmentalist said efforts associated with the Kyoto Protocol would have only a minimal effect on global warming. Money spent complying with the Protocol could be better spent elsewhere, Mr Lomborg said. "Should we do something that sounds good, or something that does good? Sustainability is worrying about the right things." Lord Holme of Cheltenham, Special Advisor to the Chairman, Rio Tinto, UK, said sustainability was best achieved when companies made themselves open to scrutiny. "Those who are powerful, as companies are, should also be accountable," he said. Companies should set environmental, societal and economic benchmarks and publicly evaluate them regularly. Ron Baukol, a board member and retired executive of 3M, USA, said that job creation should be one focus for companies implementing sustainable environmental policies. At 3M, Mr Baukol said that one third of the company's profits went to harvesting growth for more job opportunities. Such a model helped to "build and sustain a society," he said. Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Chairman of Business Action for Sustainable Development, said that businesses had made considerable strides in sustainability over the past 10 years. For that to continue, public-private partnerships were needed, with "real projects" and "trackable initiatives." *{return to list of sessions}