Force for Good has identified the need for more effective global frameworks of law and regulation  to drive the market in sustainable directions. It argues that global companies must work proactively and cooperatively with NGOs, other companies and international organisations to ensure those frameworks.

Writing as an ecological economist I applaud this idea. The market can only operate effectively if it remains within ecological capacity limits and if the distributive consequences of limiting the call on the earth's resources are handled equitably. That requires watertight policy mechanisms with an eye for fairness. After that the market can be allowed to do its job.

Whomever American voters choose as their next President on Nov. 4, he will face a set of problems as daunting as any an incoming president has encountered in recent memory.

In addition to two wars and the financial crisis, a recession and a staggering budget deficit, volatile markets and energy prices, and the shifting geopolitics of oil, the next President will be expected to show a strong and early commitment to joining the international community as a full partner in fighting global climate change.