Editing The Skeptical Environmentalist (section)

== Legacy ==
[[Jim Giles (reporter)|Jim Giles]] wrote a 2003 retrospective on the book in ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', saying it was "packed with facts and figures, yet it was the emotional response that it inspired that will be best remembered," and argued that it would have little long-lasting influence.<ref name=":8" /> Giles suggested the intense critical reaction from scientists and environmental groups was driven by fears that the book's talking points would be adopted by the [[Presidency of George W. Bush|Bush administration]], but their criticisms conversely boosted sales and Lomborg's profile. [[Cambridge University Press]] said sales of the book quadrupled in the month following negative reviews in ''Scientific American''. [[Jeffrey Harvey (biologist)|Jeffrey Harvey]], who had debated Lomborg several times by 2003, admitted that the tone of attacks on Lomborg could have been counterproductive.<ref name=":8" /> In 2005, an article by a group of non-climatologist scientists published in the ''[[Journal of Information Ethics]]'', claimed that most criticism against the book was unjustified, and that the scientific community had misused their authority to suppress the author.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Rörsch, A |title=On the opposition against the book The Skeptical Environmentalist by B. Lomborg |journal=Journal of Information Ethics |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=16–28 |year=2005 |doi=10.3172/JIE.14.1.16 |last2=Frello |first2=Thomas |last3=Soper |first3=Ray |last4=De Lange |first4=Adriaan}} ():</ref> The claim that the accusations against Lomborg were unjustified was challenged in the next issue of the journal by Kåre Fog who asserts that, "despite the ministry's decision, most of the accusations against Lomborg were valid." He also rejected the [[Galileo affair|Galileo hypothesis]], "that Lomborg is a brave young man confronting old-fashioned opposition."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fog |first=K. |date=September 2005 |title=The real nature of the opposition against B. Lomborg |journal=Journal of Information Ethics |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=66–76 |doi=10.3172/JIE.14.2.66}}</ref> 

Another article published in the ''Journal of Integrative Environmental Sciences'' in 2010, recounted the controversy surrounding the book and criticised the author and publisher, saying "the question remains why a book that contains so many flaws by someone without any scientific credentials has received so much public attention." The article also pointed to contradiction of the principles of [[environmental economics]] in the book. They concluded that "the book is anyway sure to go down in history as an unreliable source of information and argumentation, being one of the most severely criticized texts issued ever by a prestigious academic publisher".<ref name=":2" /> 

Despite the controversy, ''The Skeptical Environmentalist'' established Lomborg as a public figure and prominent critic of the [[scientific consensus on climate change]].<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0" /> He was named one of the [[Time 100|''Time'' 100]] most influential people in 2004, and established the [[Copenhagen Consensus]] to institutionalize his views.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2010-08-30 |title=Bjørn Lomborg: the dissenting climate change voice who changed his tune |url=http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/30/bjorn-lomborg-climate-change-profile |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=the Guardian |language=en |archive-date=31 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220831132120/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/30/bjorn-lomborg-climate-change-profile |url-status=live}}</ref> He was also appointed director of the [[Environmental Assessment Institute]] in Denmark.<ref name=":3" /> By 2004, some polluting industries bodies had already quoted Lomborg or invited him to speak to further their agendas.<ref name=":8" /> ''The Skeptical Environmentalist'' was followed by ''[[Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming]]'', which was published in 2007.<ref name=":0" />