UnEarth Magazine.

Words by Jadzia Allright, Art by Lucy Brown.

With the birth of organisations such as Fridays for Future and Youth Extinction Rebellion, there has been increased interest from youth groups with regards to climate related activism. This, combined with the impact and widespread reach of social media, has led to many young people getting involved and demanding better from political figures and policymakers. This has also meant that many people have adjusted their life to attempt to reduce their impact on the world and help halt the approaching climate crisis. However, some people argue that it is the responsibility of businesses, governments, and corporations to make a change, before asking singular people to adjust their living habits. I will be discussing these two perspectives and ending with my individual opinion on this continuous debate.  

The Guardian published an article titled ‘Just 100 companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions’ in 2017, where the author detailed how companies such as ExxonMobil, Shell, and BP have been the highest emitters since 1988. Additionally, the top 20 companies have contributed the equivalent of 480 billion tonnes of CO2 since 1965. With this mindset, it seems useless to attempt to change your behaviour when it is huge corporations contributing extremely large amounts. Furthermore, fossil fuel companies were aware of climate change and the impacts their the general public did. It is not just the energy sector, to climate change. 

Not all individuals are created equal, when considering climate change impacts. This is another aspect to consider when thinking about the climate crisis. It was recently discovered that just 12 billionaires create more pollution than over 2 million homes. A combination of yachts, private jets, and investments have meant that 12 individuals have out-polluted millions of others. Some billionaires attempt to use their influence to help with environmental issues, but this is often an empty gesture. For example, Jeff Bezos committed $10 billion to an Earth Fund, however, his personalised superyacht is estimated to emit 7,154 tonnes of CO2/year. For reference, a 2014 analysis found that the average UK household emits 8.1 tonnes of CO2/year. Therefore, Bezos’ personal superyacht alone emits more than 800 UK households per year. Despite his supposed commitments to climate change, his personal emissions remain incomparable. Furthermore, merely by the fact that they own the corporations, these billionaires could be considered among the highest emitters worldwide. And yet, these individuals increase this number by making investments into other heavily polluting industries, such as fossil fuels. With such a small number of individuals doing so much damage, is it worth the effort to amend personal actions to combat the crisis?  

The average individual person’s emissions are much lower than the aforementioned billionaires. However, this is where the question of individual responsibility comes into play. China is currently the largest emitter overall, with the US having the highest emissions per capita. Still, the average person does not emit anything comparable to the likes of billionaires and corporations, until you consider consumption trends. The reason why China is the largest emitter in the world is the manufacturing that occurs to meet demands from other countries. It is in this way that although we are not directly responsible, we are complicit in a larger system that produces unsustainable emissions. There is a personal responsibility to reduce consumption, which in turn will reduce overall emissions. On the other hand, people are not equally complicit, and it is often systemic issues that perpetuate climate change. If you can just afford a home that is only reachable by car, is it your fault that you are dependent on a car?  

Overall, the issue of climate change still prevails. Whilst corporations and billionaires should be held accountable, there are things that the average person can do. The key is reducing consumption and making more sustainable choices, but do not beat yourself up if you accidentally do your washing on a non-eco saver setting.