The issues involved in choosing an effective response to the challenge of climate change are considered. The paradigm of a low-carbon economy is analyzed critically using the criterion of stabilizing global warming so that it does not exceed 2°С warming by the end of the 21st century. The criteria of improving citizens' quality of life and providing for sustainable economic growth are also important. Efficient actions that minimize the risks to socioeconomic development posed by climate change

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... ill require the implementation of an integrated set of institutional, economic, and technological measures. High-priority actions include: fostering economic growth by increasing the effectiveness of production using the best-available technologies for resource processing and management; reducing the hazardous impact of industrial emissions on the environment and human health; adaptation and protection of communities and ecosystems against industrial waste and climate change; and alleviation of the accumulated negative effects resulting from climate change. These priorities will help in mitigating the present and future hazardous impacts of technology on the environment.