Climate Justice: Beyond Carbon Emissions

Climate change is one of the most pressing global challenges of our time. It imposes a profound threat to the environment, human society, and the future of our planet. The dominant narrative surrounding climate change often centers on the reduction of carbon emissions, and while this is a critical aspect of addressing the issue, it is essential to recognize that it is not limited solely to the carbon cycle. 

A comprehensive approach to climate action must encompass a broader spectrum of factors and strategies, including mitigating other greenhouse gases, adapting to the inevitable changes, preserving biodiversity, and addressing the social and economic dimensions of climate change. 

From a general social perspective, the context of climate change expands and aggravates existing inequalities, and has a greater negative impact on the most vulnerable populations. The vulnerability of populations is determined by their social conditions, such as poverty, access to natural-economic resources and decision-making positions. In this article, we will review some of the most urgent negative social impacts of climate change. 

1. Food crisis: 

Global warming has a serious impact on agriculture and water resources, affecting species, cycles and soils. This will affect agriculture in different ways all over the planet and will have a direct impact on the access and nutritional quality of people's food. The inability to forecast seasonal weather conditions, decreases crop yields and thus food availability. In addition, variations in temperature, rainfall and seasons promote the appearance and spread of unusual weeds and pests and force the transformation of crop areas. As plant species develop in specific soils and under specific conditions, they may become unsuitable for the traditional crops that are the basis of the local communities diet. Livestock production may be affected by the decrease in the availability of space, feed and water.

2. Water scarcity and quality: 

Climate change will lead to changes in water resources, resulting in prolonged dry periods that make access to drinking water and sanitation more difficult. The increase in global temperatures leads to water scarcity. This has direct and serious impacts on people's lives in terms of food security, health and economic activities. Not only does it increase the water stress of populations, but also the quality of available water is at stake. Reduced availability of the resource increases the pressure for access to drinking water sources. 

3. Health Issues: 

Temperature changes can accelerate the appearance of outbreaks of malaria, cholera, dengue fever and other vector-borne diseases that find favorable environments for their propagation. Many of these diseases are considered neglected or non-existent in countries with cold and/or developed climates. However, this reality could change with the rise in global average temperature. 

With the progressive disappearance of natural habitats, animals are brought closer to inhabited areas and more frequent and closer interactions are generated, which can lead to the emergence of new diseases for the human species (zoonotic diseases are transmitted by animal species to humans like monkeypox, covid-19, HIV-AIDS, West Nile virus, Ebola and MERS, etc).

4. Increased poverty: 

Climate change puts pressure on existing social structures and accentuates existing inequalities. Environmental degradation and decreased food production due to lower crop yields, droughts and floods are expected to drive up food prices, hindering access to adequate nutrition and food for many more people than those currently suffering from these hardships. It will also deepen food shortages for the most vulnerable populations, exacerbating the problem of global poverty.  

5. Climate refugees: 

A higher evaporation rate as a result of higher temperatures will fuel extreme weather events such as Floods, droughts, desertification, storms and hurricanes, food crisis and poverty will generate the need for displacement of a large number of people. 

It is estimated that by 2050, between 25 million and one billion people will be displaced by causes directly related to climate change. This volume of migration represents the largest and most profound humanitarian crisis in history. Climate change has the potential to alter the demographic distribution of the world's population, which will increase the pressures for access to natural resources in certain regions.

6. Disappearance of territories: 

Island and coastal populations are very vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, not only because of the rise in sea level (which can submerge them totally or partially under water affecting the infrastructure and access to resources), but also because of the lack of access to drinking water (due to the corruption of reserves and soil salinization) and food. The increase in the frequency of extreme weather events places them in a situation of greater risk and greater likelihood of forced migration due to climate change. According to different sea level rise projections and scenarios, some island states could completely disappear from the map. 

7. Social and geopolitical tensions and armed conflicts: 

The increased need for access to natural resources could increase political tension between different social actors. In contexts of high tension, conflicts arise and can escalate into situations of progressive violence, leading to armed conflicts. UN studies show that most of the international armed conflicts of the last century were motivated by access to certain natural resources. Given the proliferation of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction, a scenario of generalized social and political tension could have catastrophic consequences for humanity.

8. Gender Inequality: 

We mentioned earlier that climate change expands and aggravates existing inequalities, and has a greater negative impact on the most vulnerable populations. In different parts of the world, women have less access to natural and economic resources and are therefore more vulnerable to the consequences of climate change. In addition, social tensions show increasing levels of violence against women. 

While reducing carbon emissions is a pivotal aspect of climate action, it is essential to recognize that addressing climate change should not be focus solely on this strategy. Climate change is a multi-faceted challenge with interconnected components that require a comprehensive approach. By embracing a multifaceted strategy that considers the social challenges we are presented with, we can effectively combat global warming and promote social and economic equity. 

It is time to expand our focus beyond carbon emissions and commit to a more inclusive and comprehensive response to the defining challenge of our time.

We all share the responsibility to do so, climate change is OUR PROBLEM.