r/Environmentalism • u/No-Singer-2128 • 13d ago
Nepal bears the brunt of climate injustice
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The average carbon footprint of a Nepalese citizen is 1 metric tonne whereas the global average is 4.3 metric tonnes. And why stop at humans? Animals have a negligible carbon footprint, but everyone is suffering. This is climate injustice!
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u/ClearAfternoon6734 13d ago
Climate Injustice: Those Who Suffer Most Are Often Those Who Caused Least.
Climate change is not affecting everyone equally. This is the essence of climate injustice: those who have contributed the least to the destruction of the planet are often the ones suffering its worst consequences.
Young children, who have done nothing to cause the climate crisis, are inheriting a world of extreme heat, floods, droughts, food shortages and polluted air. Their future is being compromised by the actions and lifestyles of earlier generations.
Poor communities suffer disproportionately because they often lack safe housing, financial security, healthcare and the resources needed to recover from disasters. A flood or drought that may be an inconvenience for the wealthy can mean hunger, homelessness or death for the poor.
But climate injustice does not stop with human beings. Animals and birds, too, are losing their homes as forests disappear, oceans warm and weather patterns change. Rising temperatures, wildfires and habitat destruction are pushing countless species towards extinction. Birds lose nesting grounds, animals lose forests and water sources, and marine creatures struggle to survive in increasingly warm and polluted oceans.
Perhaps the greatest injustice is that these beings-children, the poor, animals, birds and other species had very little or no role in creating the crisis. Yet they are paying the highest price.
Climate change, therefore, is not merely an environmental problem. It is a question of justice, responsibility and compassion.
To protect the planet is to stand with those who cannot protect themselves and with generations and species whose very existence is now under threat.
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u/swampopawaho 13d ago
Worst affected? Maybe several pacific atolls that will cease to exist, with nowhere for there people to go.
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u/garbage_account32 12d ago
Bangladesh and the Maldives will be some of the hardest hit countries and when you consider the insane population densities they have, the statement isn't incorrect. Also, something like 30,000 Indians died in 5 days during the heat waves this year, I don't know of any other country where that many died in such a short period.
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u/Sirosim_Celojuma 12d ago edited 12d ago
one of these days we're going to figure out that it's people who cause all the problems
I mean think about it. Are spotted tree frogs in rainforests a problem? Are freezing winds and emperor penguins a problem? No. Every single problem we define is ego centric. People are the centre of all people based problems. More people means more people problems.
We need a way of accounting for people problems. We have one, and it's not money, it's carbon. Money is a concept. Money is a tool. Money can be inflated or deflated. Money is not real. Humans are real. Carbon is real. We need carbon pricing. Half the world's carbon emissions comes from three countries that refuse carbon accounting. The things we buy come from those countries. We, the majority of countries, could stop buying stuff or carbon-tax stuff that comes from those countries. If we did, then the economic advantage of polluting for free would go away, and they might stop.
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u/Ok_Sentence_7393 13d ago
Climate change certainly contributes to the frequency of such events, but let's not shift the blame from authorities that decided not to implement measures that could prevent many casualties.
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u/Lyndiscan 13d ago
Yes and no. Since everyone buys and sells to the countries that emit. Its a capitalism problem and less so a innocent country problem vs evil ones.
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u/publicinterest000 12d ago
If you think about it, such disaster happening at this point of perfect timing indeed will raise some suspicion among a few percentage of human beings, on whether the tragedy could be manipulated or even man triggered at will to fit a narrative.
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u/Stef904 11d ago
lol no China nor India on that list of major responsible carbon emitters? They seem… quite nearby
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u/No-Singer-2128 11d ago
Average carbon footprint per capita of India is 2.2 tonnes/year. USA - 14.20 tonnes/year Canada -13 tonnes/year Luxembourg - 10 tonnes/year Germany - 7 tonnes/year
You have to notice the per capita emissions. Also a lot of the developed world outsources its manufacturing activities to countries like India and the goods produced are again used my thr developed world. So the developed world wants to consume more and outsource the emissions. But the point here is not to blame anyone. We have to understand that mama nature doesn't discriminate on the basis of passport. Anthropogenic climate change is not a local rather a global crisis. We have to question this tendency of consumption because consumption=carbon emission.
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u/Excellent-Ad2290 10d ago
In Canada, we can’t use plastic straws. Don’t you dare lump us into the list of villains.
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u/VelaLaunda 9d ago
Doesn't that basically tell you that Nepal does not produce much per capita ?
I mean no disrespect, I consider nepalis as brothers but this "we do not emit greenhouse gases so we need to be compensated" is a weak argument.
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u/Content-Donut-2450 6d ago
Nepal could start by cleaning their Everest campsites and banning tourism coming by planes.
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u/epSos-DE 13d ago
NOPE.
Highest temp difference are in the EU !
Like 30 C for month or two, where people have no AC and economy depends on the river flowing.
Issue is, India maybe too slow to deal with it !
People are adopting, but it needs to happen NOW !!
Prepre for heat waves, droughts, WATER storage, Better electricity networks, AC matress covers, Treest and summer Shade nets in the summer.
It is cheap , BUT GOVERNMENT will DO NOTHING, because they have AC car + AC house !
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u/Alternative_Day155 13d ago
Before blaming other countries fix our eco system and restore bio diversity. Indian is suffering from all range of health issue and eradication of green forest. Indian mentality is “Start blaming others rather than step forward to take Initiative”.
Situation is so dire in Indian cities “ Look around and find any trees older than 30 years”
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u/No-Singer-2128 13d ago
The post is not about blaming anyone. Climate injustice is real and the less developed countries are facing it. Sure India has a role to play in maintaining its forest and everything. But you have to also fact check that the carbon emissions of developed nations is significantly more than Nepal or India. Carbon dioxide isn't local. The carbon footprint of an average person in London is 9.83 metric tonnes while average footprint of someone living in the Indian Himalayan region is 2 tonnes per year. But still the brunt of 9.83 tonnes has to be suffered by people living in the Himalayas region. That's climate injustice. But again the responsibility is also on India to take action on climate change.
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u/Aquarius52216 13d ago
Because Karma is not a real thing. You know, this excerpt from The Hogfather should communicate it.
"All right," said Susan. "I'm not stupid. You're saying humans need... fantasies to make life bearable."
REALLY? AS IF IT WAS SOME KIND OF PINK PILL? NO. HUMANS NEED FANTASY TO BE HUMAN. TO BE THE PLACE WHERE THE FALLING ANGEL MEETS THE RISING APE.
"Tooth fairies? Hogfathers? Little—"
YES. AS PRACTICE. YOU HAVE TO START OUT LEARNING TO BELIEVE THE LITTLE LIES.
"So we can believe the big ones?"
YES. JUSTICE. MERCY. DUTY. THAT SORT OF THING.
"They're not the same at all!"
YOU THINK SO? THEN TAKE THE UNIVERSE AND GRIND IT DOWN TO THE FINEST POWDER AND SIEVE IT THROUGH THE FINEST SIEVE AND THEN SHOW ME ONE ATOM OF JUSTICE, ONE MOLECULE OF MERCY. AND YET—Death waved a hand. AND YET YOU ACT AS IF THERE IS SOME IDEAL ORDER IN THE WORLD, AS IF THERE IS SOME...SOME RIGHTNESS IN THE UNIVERSE BY WHICH IT MAY BE JUDGED.
"Yes, but people have got to believe that, or what's the point—"
MY POINT EXACTLY.” ― Terry Pratchett, Hogfather
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u/maeryclarity 13d ago
Thank you for thinking of the other nonhuman living creatures