Thirty years ago, on this day, June 20th 1994, insurers do the sums and begin to wonder…
Interestingly, big business, led by the $1.4 trillion dollar insurance industry, is becoming increasingly worried about global warming. After a global record loss of SUS27.1 billion in 1992.
Munich Reinsurance, the largest reinsurance company in the world, stated, “Action is now required first and foremost from politics and business: the imminent change in our climate makes speedy, radical counter-measures unavoidable.”
Jackson, E. and Goldsworthy, L. 1994. No doubt about global warming. Canberra Times, June 20, p.16.
The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 359ppm. As of 2024 it is 426ppm, but check here for daily measures.
The context is again, that the COP1 meeting is pending in the not too distant future. But the denialist lobby the Global Climate Coalition is riding high and is taking the oxygen and seemingly speaking on behalf of “all business.” But reinsurers need to look at the future. And they also understand that if, once in 100 year events start happening every 10 years, then their business model of insuring insurance basically falls over. So they really ought to do something. The dilemma facing them is that nobody cares; they’re only reinsurers. Yawnsville.
What we learn is that factions of capitalism were, from the mid 90s, looking ahead and saying in the words of that shuttle pilot “uh oh.”
What happened next a whole bunch of insurers turned up to day 1 of COP1 and then went home. The fossil fuel lobbyists stayed there for the whole thing. How do I know? I read the Carbon War by Jeremy Leggett.
See also Greenpeace talking about the “climate time bomb” the previous week
What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs
Also on this day:
June 20, 1977- “Alternative Three” – An early Climate Hoax
June 20, 1979 – Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the White House