Sir Nicholas says climate change needs to be dealt with to preserve current living standards and safeguard economies. He says global warming, if not confronted, will grow worse and cause costly disruptions, such as inundating coastal cities and environmental refuges in countries that will no longer be habitable.

“It’s very clear to me now that we can be green and grow,” he told reporters outside the Toronto Stock Exchange, where he held a joint news conference with Dr. Suzuki.

“I don’t think it’s a horse race between growth and being responsible on climate change. Good policy can give us both,” Sir Nicholas said. “Eventually, if we ignore the problem of climate change, it’s growth and living standards that will suffer.”

In his presentation, Sir Nicholas said it will cost about 1 per cent of GDP, or economic output, to deal with climate change, which, at worst, could reduce the economy by 20 per cent. “The costs of inaction are far greater than the costs of action,” he says.

He thinks countries can reduce their emissions through such steps as carbon taxes, capping releases for industries, and requiring devices such as appliances to be more energy efficient.

Dr. Suzuki, the well-known broadcaster who also heads an environmental think tank, was praising Sir Nicholas yesterday.

“I think most of us in the area are not economists. We can’t speak with anything like the credibility that Sir Nicholas has,” he said.