Papua New Guinea's prime minister, Sir Michael Somare, has called for the rich world and the developing world to come together to stop deforestation by putting an economic value on unlogged forests.
Sir Michael made the call in a speech to the Lowy Institute in Sydney.
He said climate change is real and that a major re-think of economic theory is needed.
It is estimated that the carbon stored in the developing world's forests is subsidisng the rich countries greenhouse emmissions to the tune of $100 billion a year.
Sir Michael said, at the moment, poor countries get no economic benefit from providing service.
"Without true valuation of our vast environmental assets we have struggled with schools that cannot afford the best teachers and health centres with only basic medicine," he said.
Sir Michael said the developed and developing world should work together to create new markets so that poor countries can ...