Wealthy individuals have a higher carbon footprint. A new study published in Nature Climate Change quantifies the climate outcomes of these inequalities. It finds that the world's wealthiest 10% are responsible for two-thirds of observed global warming since 1990 and the resulting increases in climate extremes such as heat waves and droughts.

“If everyone had emitted like the bottom 50% of the global population, the world would have seen minimal additional warming since 1990,”

The study assesses the contribution of the highest emitting groups within societies and finds that the top 1% of the wealthiest individuals globally contributed 26 times the global average to increases in monthly 1-in-100-year heat extremes globally and 17 times more to Amazon droughts.

The research sheds new light on the links between income-based emissions inequality and climate injustice, illustrating how the consumption and investments of wealthy individuals have had disproportionate impacts on extreme weather events

Our study shows that extreme climate impacts are not just the result of abstract global emissions, instead we can directly link them to our lifestyle and investment choices, which in turn are linked to wealth,"

  • Kecessa@sh.itjust.works
    392·
    3 days ago

    In 2018 the richest 10% were those with a net worth of USD >93k, so just to be clear, if you’re here and you’re not in school anymore, you’re probably included in that.

    People in rich countries don’t realize how few people in the world can live their lifestyle.

    • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
      4·
      3 days ago

      The figures you cite must concern specifically the USA. Certainly not the whole world, as article says. Was wrong, it’s for everyone. A nice demonstration of wealth inequality. As others have said, vast numbers of people even in rich countries have nowhere near this wealth. But the property owners do, basically.

      And in most other “rich countries” very few people (even the richest) are accumulating such sums in their twenties. Partly because the social safety net makes it less urgent, partly because the USA is just a weirdly materialistic society. It really is an outlier in all this, the stats are clear.

      But sure, most of us here are going to be in the developed world (1 or 2 billion out of 8) and so probably also the world’s top 10%.

    • JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
      54·
      3 days ago

      I think a lot of millennials and older zoomers are in negative net worth, so we probably aren’t, actually.

        • JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
          8·
          3 days ago

          35 and Younger: Median net worth: $39,000; Average net worth: $183,500

          That’s quite a spread. Seems to me like there’s quite a disparity, and still the majority of the age group is well under 100k net worth.

          If the 50th percentile is 39k, and the average of the whole group is 183k, then the high end must be really high and very small.

          That disparity only gets worse in older age groups.

          • Kecessa@sh.itjust.works
            5·
            3 days ago

            Ages 35 to 44

            Median net worth: $135,600

Average net worth: $549,600

            The vast majority of millennials are in that category, not under 35. Gen Y starts in 81 and ends in 96.

            • JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
              1·
              3 days ago

              I meant to say younger millennials and zoomers. Not millennials and older zoomers. My bad.

              • Kecessa@sh.itjust.works
                2·
                3 days ago

                And by the time these younger millennials reach 35+ they’ll also be worth more, just like the people before them weren’t worth over 100k when they were in their 20s and early 30s…

                • JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
                  1·
                  3 days ago

                  Yes. Exactly. And they aren’t now.

                  So it’s assumable that they likely aren’t flying around in private jets.

                  • Kecessa@sh.itjust.works
                    2·
                    3 days ago

                    They’ll still be in that 10% when they’re older and they probably already live a very unsustainable lifestyle if they’re from first world countries.

                    10% is just a nice number to use, a millennial that takes the plane to cross the country to see their family on Christmas has a much higher environmental impact than poor farmer in a third world country.