Question

disagree on topic Climate change is the greatest threat to human hist
ory

Answer 1

For the past decade, the World Economic Forum has put out a yearly review of the greatest threats to our world—the economic and geopolitical risks that endanger our planet, our way of life, and even our species.

This year, for the third year running, “extreme weather” induced by climate change has taken the top spot in the Global Risks Report (pdf), issued the week prior to the forum’s gab fest in Davos, Switzerland. In second and third place are failed climate-change mitigation, and natural disasters, respectively.

Economic risks such as fiscal crises and market collapses, which were once the preoccupation of the 1,000 or so surveyed experts in business, government, and civil society, are secondary to the risks we pose to our planet. That’s not to say we’re rid of them, however: The report noted increasing market volatility, as well as intensifying “headwinds facing the global economy.” Political turmoil is another concern: “Geopolitical and geo-economic tensions are rising among the world’s major powers. These tensions represent the most urgent global risks at present.” While climate crisis may be a greater concern in the long-run, political turmoil seems closer on the horizon.