Climate justice

Climate justice is generally used as a term for viewing climate change as an ethical issue and considering how its causes and effects relate to concepts of justice, particularly environmental justice and social justice. This can mean examining issues such as equality, human rights, collective rights and historical responsibility in relation to climate change. Recognizing and addressing the fact that those least responsible for climate change experience its greatest impacts is seen by many as being central to climate justice.[1][2] The term is also used with reference to legal systems, where justice is achieved through application and development of law in the area of climate change.[3]

Definitions of climate justice

Climate justice is a fluid concept; however, there are recurring themes across definitions. The following definitions taken from 'Organizing Cools The Planet' give a picture of the various understandings of climate justice:[4]

Roots in Environmental Justice: “Climate Justice is a vision to dissolve and alleviate the unequal burdens created by climate change. As a form of environmental justice, climate justice is the fair treatment of all people and freedom from discrimination with the creation of policies and projects that address climate change and the systems that create climate change and perpetuate discrimination.”[5]

Climate Justice as Evaluative Model: “Climate Justice is a struggle over land, forest, water, culture, food sovereignty, collective and social rights; it is a struggle that considers “justice” at the basis of any solution; a struggle that supports climate solutions found in the practices and knowledge of those already fighting to protect and defend their livelihoods and the environment; a struggle that insists on a genuine systematic transformation in order to tackle the real causes of climate change… Climate Justice addresses four key themes: root causes, rights, reparations and participatory democracy.”[6]

Climate Justice as Global Justice: “The historical responsibility for the vast majority of greenhouse gas emissions lies with the industrialized countries of the Global North. Even though the primary responsibility of the North to reduce emissions has been recognized in the UN Climate Convention, the production and consumption habits of industrialized countries like the United States continue to threaten the survival of humanity and biodiversity globally. It is imperative that the North urgently shifts to a low carbon economy. At the same time, in order to avoid the damaging carbon intensive model of industrialization, countries of the Global South are entitled to resources and technology to make a transition to a low-carbon economy that does not continue to subject them to crushing poverty. Indigenous Peoples, peasant communities, fisherfolk, and especially women in these communities, have been able to live harmoniously and sustainably with the Earth for millennia. They are now not only the most affected by climate change, but also the most affected by its false solutions, such as agrofuels, mega-dams, genetic modification, tree plantations and carbon offset schemes.”[7]

Four Principles for Climate Justice: "Industrialized society must redefine its relationship with the sacredness of Mother Earth"[8]

  1. Leave Fossil Fuels in the Ground
  2. Demand Real and Effective Solutions
  3. Industrialized – Developed Countries Take Responsibility
  4. Living in a Good Way on Mother Earth

History of the term's use

Environmental justice and climate change vulnerability

Robert Bullard, one of the early environmental justice activist, described environmental justice as the idea that “all people and communities are entitled to equal protection of environmental and public health laws and regulations.”[15] Bullard established that in addition to the physical and natural world, the environment included the spaces where people lived, worked, played, and went to school.[15] According to the book, A Twenty First Century U.S. Policy, and the IPCC 2013 Summary for Policymakers report, climate change will bring about new forms of environmental hazards which are predicted to include increased flooding, water scarcity, and sea-level rise, among others.[16][17]

In A Twenty First Century U.S. Policy, the authors argue that the ability of populations to mitigate and adapt to the negative impacts of climate change are influenced by factors such as income, race, class, gender, capital and political representation among other social factors.[16] According to the same authors and Mohai, P. et al., as a result of the limited adaptive resources that low-income communities and communities of color are likely to have, these populations are particularly vulnerable to the predicted impacts of climate change.[15][16] The authors of A Twenty First Century U.S. Policy, also indicate that low-income people and people of color, who have lower financial stability, less insurance resources, and less access to disaster risk awareness have been least abled to recover from environmental disasters. Additionally these populations have been prone to unequal distributions of disaster relief and recovery assistance.[16] Assessing vulnerability is an important component of defining the level of threat, and the ability to make appropriate decisions concerning climate justice.[18]

Hurricane Katrina case study

NASA flood image after Hurricane Katrina

According to one study which considered the environmental justice dimensions of climate change, the outcomes of Hurricane Katrina presented insights to outcomes of predicted climate change disasters.[16] According to the authors of the book, A Twenty First Century U.S. Water Policy, the impacts of Hurricane Katrina, which involved the displacement of 400,000 individuals along the United States Gulf Coast, disproportionately affected low-income and minority victims of the disaster.[16] A study looking at the race and class dimensions of Hurricane Katrina suggest that individuals most vulnerable to the disaster included poor, black, brown, elderly, sick, and homeless people.[19]

The book A Twenty First Century U.S. Water Policy argues that a combination of geographic, social and political factors resulted in the disproportionate impact of the hurricane on low-income communities and black communities.[16] For example, low- income communities and black communities had little resources and limited mobility to evacuate before the storm.[20][21] In the aftermath of the hurricane, low- income communities and communities of color in Louisiana were burdened by the hazards of flooding waters that were polluted by contaminated sites and facilities that were located near these communities.[16] Two studies looking at the environmental justice aspects of Hurricane Katrina argue that post disaster, government responses failed to adequately assist the most affected.[15][19] Scholars Elliott, J. and Pais, J. claim that among some of these most impacted included those who had no flooding insurance, those who suffered from low job security, and the low-income homeowners which dealt with mortgage foreclosures.[20][21]

A number of research reports claim that the outcomes of Hurricane Katrina presented opportunities for revealing novel instances and causes of environmental injustices.[16][22] These include the inequitable aspects of city planning and development which result in increased risks of natural disasters and disproportionate impacts on some populations.[15][22]

Groups and organisations

See also

References

  1. ↑ See Kofi A. Annan quote, 1 October 2009 – http://blogit.realwire.com/?ReleaseID=13791
  2. ↑ globalissues.org, climate justice and equity http://www.globalissues.org/article/231/climate-justice-and-equity
  3. ↑ For example, see Climate Justice Programme http://www.climatelaw.org/
  4. ↑ Organizing Cools The Planet http://organizingcoolstheplanet.wordpress.com/
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Climate Institute, 'Climate Justice Movements' http://www.climate.org/climatelab/Climate_Justice_Movements
  6. ↑ Hoodwinked in the Hothouse http://www.actforclimatejustice.org/tools-resources/other-sources/rising-tide-publications/false-solutions-guide/
  7. ↑ Global Justice Ecology Project, 'What is Climate Justice?' http://globaljusticeecology.org/climate_justice.php
  8. ↑ For full descriptions of these four principles, see http://www.ienearth.org/docs/IEN_4_Principles_of_Climate_Justice.pdf
  9. ↑ Durban group for Climate Justice http://www.durbanclimatejustice.org/who-are-we
  10. ↑ The Global Humanitarian Forum Annual Meeting 2008 http://gkpcms.com/gkp/index.cfm/elementid/5276/The-Global-Humanitarian-Forum-to-Address-Climate-Justice
  11. ↑ Climate Justice Now statement http://climatevoices.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/call-for-%E2%80%9Csystem-change-not-climate-change%E2%80%9D-unites-global-movement/
  12. ↑ Klimaforum declaration http://09.klimaforum.org/
  13. ↑ Indymedia article http://www.indymedia.org/pt/2009/12/932387.shtml
  14. ↑ World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, People's Agreement http://pwccc.wordpress.com/support/
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 Mohai, Paul; Pellow, David; Roberts, J. Timmons (2009). "Environmental Justice". Annual Review of Environment and Resources 34 (1): 405–430. doi:10.1146/annurev-environ-082508-094348.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.6 16.7 16.8 Christian-Smith, Juliet; al.], Peter H. Gleick ; with Heather Cooley ... [et (2012). A twenty-first century US water policy (Online-Ausg. ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199859443.
  17. ↑ Stocker et al. IPCC, 2013: Summary for Policymakers. In: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  18. ↑ Adger, W. Neil., and P. M. Kelly. "Chapter 1." Assessing Vulnerability to Climate Change and Facilitating Adaptation. Norwich: Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, 1999. N. pag. Print.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Giroux, Henry A. (2006). "Reading Hurricane Katrina: Race, Class, and the Biopolitics of Disposability". College Literature 33 (3): 171–196. doi:10.1353/lit.2006.0037.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Elliott, James R.; Pais, Jeremy (2006). "Race, class, and Hurricane Katrina: Social differences in human responses to disaster". Social Science Research 35 (2): 295–321. doi:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2006.02.003.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Masozera, Michel (2007). "Distribution of impacts of natural disasters across income groups: A case study of New Orleans". Ecological Economics 63 (2-3): 299–306. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2006.06.013.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Kurtz, Hilda E. (2007). "Environmental Justice, Citizen Participation and Hurricane Katrina". Southeastern Geographer 47 (1): 111–113. doi:10.1353/sgo.2007.0007.

Further reading