Growth and development which are the fundamental aspirations of seventy percent of the world’s population can lead to disastrous consequences from the environmental viewpoint if the patterns of consumption in use in developed countries were to be adopted by developing countries. It is argued that this disastrous course of events can be avoided ‘leapfrogging’ the steps followed in the past by industrialized countries incorporating currently available modern and efficient technologies early in their development process. Several examples are given in the energy area. A discussion is also made of the policies required to promote ‘leapfrog’ technologies.
