Benchmark
World War II Economy Is a Master Class in How to Fight Climate Change
Deficit spending, moonshot technology projects, and cost-plus contracts may help
circa 1942: A full-length view of uniformed male workers assembling M-3 tanks in an American factory during World War II, 1940s.
Photographer: Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Imagine a future where scorching weather depletes the planet's natural resources, droughts bring famine and rising sea levels flood coastal cities. For a model in how to grapple with the enormity of these climate-induced scarcities, look to our grandparents' generation.
That's the premise of a new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper from Hugh Rockoff, a Rutgers University economics professor who draws parallels between the effects of global warming and the supply shortages during World War II.