Class this week has shifted to a discussion of energy and climate change. My mind has been actively sifting through these topics since last summer. I’ve heavily thought about climate change through the lens of the United States Policy and the responsibility of the Global North. My lived experiences over the past two months have convinced me that it is time for the United States and other rich nations to pursue aggressive climate action at home and help the rest of the world transition to a clean economy.
Much of my reflection this week goes back to before this trip, but it is still focused on climate and climate action.
India heat wave(BBC)
I first heard about India’s heat waves from climate scientists on Twitter. These climate scientists not only highlighted the intensity of the heat wave but the lack of coverage by the media in the United States. After speaking to my mom about the heat waves, I decided to visit India to see my grandparents. I was initially planning to visit them in Winter 2022, but I was worried about the heat waves creating potential health complications for them. I arrived in Hyderabad, India at 3 AM. I’ve been to the subcontinent before, but this late-night arrival felt different. The air felt sticky and hot despite it being the dead of the night. Yet, the real surprise came in the following days. The highs in Hyderabad hovered around 100*F for the six days I was there. I spent most of my time in the comfort of my aunt’s house, relaxing with my grandparents and my aunt. I knew that most Indians did not have the luxury of a home with air conditioning. Even if individuals were able to stave off this heat wave, there would always be a longer and stronger heat wave in the future.
Weeks later, I left India and began my study abroad in Costa Rica. Yet, my mind was jolted back to India. My mom had informed me that my grandmother had suffered a stroke and had been hospitalized. At first, her future looked uncertain but she had since been stabilized. I did some independent research, realizing that an increase in temperature was linked to an increase in stroke risk. Climate change had increased the possibility that my grandmother suffered a stroke. Climate change had finally hit home for me, even though it had hurt someone halfway across the globe. My grandmother was incredibly lucky to get the help that she needed to recover from her stroke. Other citizens of the Global South may not have the same resources to mitigate the effects of climate change. It began to dawn on me that we would have massive human suffering in the Global South within the next decade instead of the two or three that I imagined. Individuals are suffering because of the average increase in global surface temperature. These temperatures are a direct result of the CO2 emissions emitted by humans since the industrial revolution. As the temperature of the planet increases, we will see increased suffering from climatic events.
Six Degrees (Lynas)
In Six Degrees, the Three Degree chapter discussed dangerous climatic events that would increase in frequency from rising surface temperatures and rising CO2 levels. This chapter also highlighted how individuals would increasingly be mobile as the effects of climate change ultimately reshaped the land they lived on. Some individuals would have to leave the desert that once claimed their fertile lands and others would be threatened by the rising sea levels. The chapter concluded that it was likely that the rule of law would be replaced by the rule of the gun, showing us that climate change will alter systems of government and society.
While Six Degrees discussed the effects of climate change, it failed to discuss the main contributors to climate change. Countries in the Global North, including the United States, have historically contributed the majority of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. The Global South, despite having the most vulnerable populations to climate change, has contributed the least to our worldwide problem. This is based upon a concept called common but differentiated responsibility, which states that all nations are responsible for addressing climate change but not equally responsible. ( Encyclopædia Britannica) This is a concept that we discussed heavily in class when determining who should be responsible for addressing the climate crisis.
The Global North has emitted the most CO2 and garnered the most wealth and resources from this path of development. The Global North holds the tools to address climate change and ensure that all citizens of the world have a brighter future ahead of them. The Global North must take decisive action to address this crisis, especially because it fueled much of the crisis. The United States, in particular, has an important responsibility because it has contributed to around 25% of historical emissions.
US Climate Policy
As we worked through the UN exercise and the United States Senate exercise, I thought a lot about the potential of America. The United States is the country that produced the first manned flight, developed the atomic bomb, and placed the first man on the moon. While the United States should be at the forefront of addressing the climate crisis, the country’s scientific prowess is being hampered by its legislative gridlock. President Biden campaigned on restoring the United States’ leadership on climate action. Yet, he has struggled to convince the United States Senate to act in a bold way on climate.
Biden has proposed a climate framework that totals 555 Billion dollars and would help President Biden meet his climate goals. His goals include cutting America’s 2005 CO2 emissions 50% by 2030, transitioning to a clean energy grid by 2035, and achieving a net-zero economy by 2050. (Lashof) This one proposed piece of legislation would move the United States closer to a clean economy. Instead, the bill stalls in the United States Senate. While Biden continues to use his executive orders to pursue climate policy, the United States energy transition cannot be fully underway until Biden’s climate framework becomes law. Failure to pass this legislation means that America will fail to only meet its climate goals, but it will fail to address the climate crisis that it helped create. Some outside force, whether it be Joe Biden, lobbyists, or the American people, must move the United States Senate to combat this crisis and deliver America’s promise to the world. The United States should also deliver upon Biden’s promises to deliver climate finance for cash-strapped nations so that the Global South can better prepare for climate disasters. The United States can no longer be the child clapping “everyone clean up” while the world takes climate action. It’s our turn to get our hands dirty and use our wealth to ensure a more prosperous future for all nations.
Works Cited
BBC. (2022, May 5). Heatwave: India’s poor bear the brunt of blistering temperatures. BBC News. Retrieved June 17, 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-61330046
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Common but differentiated responsibilities. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved June 17, 2022, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/common-but-differentiated-responsibilities
Lashof, D. (2022, January 12). Tracking climate action under the Biden Administration: Where has progress been made? World Resources Institute. Retrieved June 17, 2022, from https://www.wri.org/insights/biden-administration-tracking-climate-action-progress
Lynas, Mark. Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet. , 2008. Print.
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