The ESG Initiative at the Wharton School

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Space Parasol Folly

Outlet: The New York Times

In this Letter to the Editor, Eric W. Orts, professor of legal studies and business ethics at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, responds to “Fringe Climate Proposal, a Giant Space Parasol, Gains Interest” (front page, Feb. 3).

The idea that we should invest trillions of dollars to construct a giant space umbrella to shield our planet from the sun is preposterous. It would be too expensive, come too late and risk “termination shock” in case of a major malfunction or accident.

If NASA or other space agencies move forward to spend millions for a pilot, perhaps it should be named the Icarus Project for its hubris.

We need to get real, create consensus on the ground that the climate challenge is serious, and build out already existing solutions to the problem right here on Earth.

Job 1: Accelerate a global transition away from a fossil-fuel-based economy.

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