Climate Inequality

Climate inequality is one of the many harms that will come with climate change. Climate inequality is the phenomenon that climate change will disproportionately harm low and middle-income countries. Countries in the Global South are at a geographical disadvantage when it comes to climate change, these countries are often closer to sea level and warmer. This subjects the Global South to harsher effects of increased temperature and rising sea level, as well as the onslaught of natural disasters that is to come. The Global South is not well equipped for these effects. The infrastructure and economies of many of these countries are not stable enough to recover from climate disasters the way that countries of the Global North are able to. To make matters worse, the Global South countries that are going to be hit the hardest have contributed far less to climate change than the Global North. The industrial revolution that made Global North countries wealthy and stable emitted much of the carbon and greenhouse gases that are driving climate change. I find the disparity between the countries that contributed to climate change and the countries that will pay the highest price for the warming climate to be unfair. Many believe the Global North is obligated to assist the Global South in terms of recovering and preventing climate change. The Global North has made various pledges to fund climate mitigation globally and make up for the disparity. The Paris Agreement is one of the most famous pledges. The agreement is a legally binding international agreement that 196 parties adopted. Among other measures to reduce emissions, the agreement also provides a framework for developed nations to provide economic assistance to less developed nations to help combat climate change. Though the Paris Agreement has yielded much success in climate mitigation, it is not believed to reach its ultimate goal of preventing the temperature rise of 1.5°C. Countries of the Global North have also pledged to share green technology with countries of the Global South. The creation and implementation of the technology needed to combat climate change can be expensive, so this pledge mitigates the cost for disadvantaged countries. Though these agreements and other similar pledges aim to combat climate inequality, I do not think it has come close to making up for the damage that has already been done. The economic activities of the Global North that led to high carbon output have allowed the north to have stable infrastructure and wealth. This gives the North an advantage in mitigating climate change. The Global South has been left behind, and climate change is only deepening the inequality gap.