Kohut’s polls show that our concern for the environment is finally catching up with worries over weapons, hunger and poverty.

Question: What are the world's biggest challenges?

Andrew Kohut: I don’t know if we can only rely on the polls or the public opinion to determine these challenges; but certainly what comes up in these polls recently is how much more . . . how much greater concern there is for the environment. The environment is . . . We ask people, “What are your dominant concerns?” The environment now rivals, if not exceeds, concern about weapons of mass destruction, and concern about hunger and . . . and poverty in some places. I mean there’s a very crowded global agenda; but what’s bumping up these days is all around the world, people are being concerned that the environment is being despoiled.

Recorded on: 9/14/07