Feature: The cost of saving the planet: US$190 billion.

What would it cost to wipe out world poverty, guarantee universal health care, stabilise population growth and roll back the ravages of global warming? About $190 billion a year, or the equivalent of a third of U.S. annual military expenditure, says Lester Brown, a prominent environmental economist, in his new book. "Once you accept that climate change, population growth, spreading water shortages, rising food prices are threats to our security, it changes your whole way of thinking about how you use public resources." From eradicating adult illiteracy to restoring fisheries and stabilising water tables, the head of the Earth Policy Institute think tank in Washington calculates the cost of saving civilisation in a new edition of his best-selling "Plan B". (Full) Thanks to "E" for the link. Picture courtesy Michael Huggins (WFP). Source: International Aid Workers Today.