Includes bibliographical references (pages 153-163) and index.

Winds of change -- The sky is filling! -- Selling the sky -- Who owns the sky? -- How a sky trust would work -- Photo album -- Thought experiments for economists -- The new commons -- Capitalism 2.0. "In Who Owns the Sky? visionary entrepreneur Peter Barnes redefines the debate about the costs and benefits of addressing climate change. He proposes a market-based institution called a Sky Trust that would set limits on carbon emissions and pay dividends to all of us, who collectively own the atmosphere as a commons. The Trust would be funded by requiring polluters to pay for the right to emit carbon dioxide and managed by a nongovernmental agency. Dividends would be paid annually, in much the same way that residents of Alaska today receive cash benefits from oil companies that drill in their state."--Jacket.