A couple months ago, Jon wrote about how the head of the United Nations environmental agency called for a “green new deal” to tackle climate change. It seems like someone else in the UN agrees with that plan. Speaking at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon spoke on the issue of climate change, and talked again of the need for a “green new deal” ahead of the international negotiations on climate change that will take place later this year. Alluding to the summit that will take place in Copenhagen this December and hopefully create an agreement that will replace the Kyoto Protocol, Secretary Ban said, “We absolutely must reach an agreement to reduce greenhouse gases and help millions of families adapt to climate change — before our time runs out.”

Reuters reports that Ban will also be going on a world tour of sorts, stating that “Ban said that before the year is out he plans to go to the North Pole, as well as to regions where drought and competition for water threaten peoples’ lives and well-being.”

The Secretary General is hoping that the meetings in Copenhagen will provide for increased investment in green ventures, in order to both jumpstart the economy and tackle climate change. Given that the article also reports that Ban will be opening the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen this weekend, it’s fair to say that he sees responsible business practices as being an integral part of preventing global warming. As we’ve said time and time again on this site, economics and environmentalism go hand in hand better than some people realize, so hopefully Secretary Ban’s words jumpstart the dialogue that will be needed to create a successful meeting come December. And, hey, maybe this time, the United States will actually, you know, join in? Fingers crossed.

photo credit: World Economic Forum’s flickr photostream/Creative Commons