Jeffrey Sachs: Common Wealth (broadcast Friday, April 18th, 2008)

The world's population, global warming, poverty, and resource use are all closely intertwined. In this segment, Ira talks with Jeffrey Sachs, the Director of the Columbia Earth Institute, Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and former director of the UN Millennium Project, about the intersection of economics and the environment. "One sixth of the world remains trapped in extreme poverty unrelieved by global economic growth, and the poverty trap poses tragic hardships for the poor and great risks for the rest of the world," writes Sachs in his new book "Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet." Sachs says that it is past time for humanity to start dealing with global problems on a global scale. We'll talk with him about some of the problems facing the planet and how he thinks they might be addressed. Teachers, find more information about using Science Friday as a classroom resource in the Kids' Connection.