Essay on Climate Change and Capitalism

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Introduction

Since the 1990’s there has been an environmental debate increasingly focused on the issues around ‘climate change’ brought about by global warming. Global warming, established as an increase in the earth’s temperature, is believed to be due to heat trapped by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (Wainwright, 2010). Some would argue climate change is the most urgent challenge currently confronting the international community. In 1992 the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was inaugurated, also known as Earth Summit, the international environmental treaty’s purpose was to address climate change. On the other hand, climate change is caused by human activity, which is rooted in a social and economic system that has a parasitoid relationship with Earth, otherwise known as capitalism (Park, 2015). Capitalism has been theorized in many different concepts, Weber (2003) views capitalism as ‘the most fateful force in modern life’ further adding, ‘it is driven by spirit, that has come to shape the modern world in ways that go beyond the economic foundations of capitalism as an economic system’. Whereas Marcuse (1964) states capitalism has become an ideology of a one-dimensional society that can no longer conceive an alternative.

In this essay, I am going to critically evaluate the problems capitalism has caused for climate change. Through evidence and research has capitalism been found to be the root cause of climate change, in contrast to it being a solution.

Main Body

Capitalism is a highly exploitative system of both the planet and people, driven by profit and accumulation (Hannah, 2019). Designed as a mechanism for the allocation of scarce resources, encouraging human ingenuity and improving the quality of life for those willing and able to participate within the system. This economic model has been effective in converting natural resources into fungible commodities and monetary wealth (Park, 2015). By transmitting vast amounts of natural resources into marketable products, capitalism has generated an unparalleled degree of wealth and prosperity. Capitalism has produced a plethora of socioeconomic benefits; it has also produced unforeseen and undesirable consequences. Every product is a by-product, with the ability to extract and consume an immense amount of natural resources has a monstrous amount of waste been made from physical garbage, atmospheric pollution and other forms of environmental degradation (Park, 2015). James Lovelock developed the Gaia hypothesis, whereby the earth is understood as a living entity that acts to maintain its existence (Lovelock, 2016). The ecological ideology conveys the powerful message that human beings must respect the health of the planet. Lovelock believed that any species which imposes a threat to the delicate balance of Gaia such as humans, the earth is likely to extinguish (Lovelock, 2016). It can be suggested a capitalist system uses extensive amounts of natural resources causing immense pollution and pressure on Earth, as stated by Lovelock this could one day cause the end of planet Earth.

Climate change has been the most severe consequence of society’s demand for natural resources. Park (2015) stated pollution is the direct consequence of consumption therefore a limit is needed on the burning of fossil fuels. The IPCC (2013) found humans are 95% responsible for the cause of global warming. The current capitalist system is neither designed for nor capable of consciously inhibiting its propensity for unsustainable growth (Park, 2015). However, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) devised a ‘global carbon budget’. This budget is a measurement of how many tons of carbon humans can collectively emit before reaching the 2 degrees Celsius warming threshold, however, this doesn’t include other effects of greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide and methane. Furthermore, Kirtman (2013) predicts we could potentially over exceed the budget by early 2045 with current pollution rates. It is important to note, that efforts made on an international level have been constructed however their success rates aren’t high.

Park (2015) identifies capitalism as incompetent in accurately assessing and conveying the true value of natural resources. Within the capitalist paradigm it is seen as aberrant and inadmissible to not extract and consume the total global supply of fossil fuels because they are considered a commodity rather than as a benign, unemployable resource. Yet the environmental reality is that just burning a quarter of the available supply of fossil fuels would severely endanger the survival of life on Earth as we know it, therefore striving for a more developed, clean, reliable, and renewable energy source is required as soon as possible (Hannah, 2019). Within recent years, climate change activism has been increasingly dominant with millennials such as Greta Thunberg, who is the representative of the ‘school strike for climate movement’. This has included children walking out of school to demand their parents’ generation take responsibility for leaving them on the planet on which they live (McDuff, 2019). Unfortunately, future generations will become much more radical with their political views regarding climate change as there is little choice for them.

Currently, the world population is 7.8 billion (UN, 2019). The world’s population is growing vastly, outpacing the ability of our planet to support it, further space, food, water, and energy supplies are required to meet the demand. Movahed (2016) states overpopulation compounded with unbridled industrial activity leads to environmental disasters such as global warming, climate change, acid deposition, soil degradation, and air and water pollution. Movahed (2016) identified overpopulation and massive industrial outputs of both developing and developed countries as having irrevocably deleterious impacts on the climate. Fischer (1993) states overpopulation is associated with negative environmental and economic outcomes ranging from the impacts of food insecurity to deforestation and water pollution. Green (2012) points out the world produces enough food to feed the entire human population adequately; however, people starve because capitalism treats people who aren’t currently producing profits for it as surplus. Furthermore, Thomas Malthus a political economist and clergyman created a book called Essay on Population 1798, a key argument identified was population growth will always exceed the growth of the means of subsistence because population growth is exponential or geometric. Therefore, population growth would always result in famine, disease, and war (Malthus, 1798).

The price of non-renewable natural resources within a capitalist system shows the future value of these finite resources will not be accounted for. The rate of greenhouse gas emissions has increased sharply since the 1990s, driven by strong economic growth in developing countries that often consume massive natural resources. China and India have rapidly grown within the past 20 years, the core of their development is their access to and extraction of natural non-renewable resources that generate one of the highest carbon gas emissions (Movahed, 2016). Due to the uncertainty of future natural resources, this means they are generally under-priced and undervalued as future value is not accounted for in the dynamics of supply and demand within a capitalist economy. A study by Margaret Slade for the World Bank shows the great negative ‘externality’ impact that is inflicted upon the environment as a result of extraction and production, whilst the use of minerals is due to the under-pricing of non-renewable natural resources (Movahed, 2016). Furthermore, the vast mineral consumption is liable for a large part of world pollution which is not considered in the prices available on the market. An example would be the fluctuating price of oil which is produced by the Persian Gulf States (Movahed, 2016).

Within a capitalist system comes competitors seeking the same resources, in this case it would be non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels. Not only has such resources caused huge environmental impacts on the earth’s environment it has also caused additional issues within international states (Ahuja, Tatsutani and Schaffer, 2009). The link between resources and global power can be seen in the emergence of a new international energy order. Now not only can a state’s international ranking be measured by economic and military capabilities but also by the amount of oil and gas reserves and its ability to mobilise other sources of wealth to purchase the resources of energy-rich countries. (Klare, 2008). This divides the world’s states into energy surplus and energy deficit. As seen above in Graph 1, China, the US, and India are the World’s leading emitters but are energy-deficit countries, whilst Russia is an energy-surplus country. Many have stated the 1991 Gulf War and the 2003 invasion of Iraq were motivated by resource power and reserves over oil (Ahmed, 2014).

Other conflicts have risen too, due to international capitalist growth. Food insecurity has affected the grazing of land and therefore reduced crops, as drought has increased throughout the world (Borger, 2007). An example of a conflict driven by climate change and environmental degradation would be the Darfur climate war in 2003. Rainfall fell by 30% over the last 40 years whilst the Sahara has advanced by 60 miles over the last 40 years, leaving tensions with farmers and herders over the disappearing pasture and evaporating water holes (Borger, 2007). Causing north and south-Sudan, to once again reignite their half-century war. The IPCC estimates the growing rate of wealth-to-poverty ratios will grow greater and climate change could lead to deepening ethnic and social tensions (IPCC, 2015). Due to climate change external problems arose within the capitalist system.

Capitalism has played a primary role in climate change, in a system where moral and ethical values aren’t considered but profit and money are, greed takes over. Although capitalism will remain the primary system for the inevitable future, methods of improving the earth’s health and environment have become a focal point in the 21st century. A capitalist system will not be able to reverse the damage caused, however, it can implement changes to make a positive impact. For instance, electric cars have been capitalized under the narrative of being sustainable and eco-friendly, as the power supply is electricity instead of coal or oil. Many solutions have been put forward to help ease the pollution that is being emitted into the atmosphere.

As well as this, many international cooperation agreements have been made within the last 25 years. The 1997 Kyoto Protocol (UNFCCC) marked the first agreement on state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, coming into fruition in 2005, with 192 parties included within the protocol. Whilst the protocol was never going to act as a solution to climate change, it provided a first international step on the long road to recovery. Mitigation was the focal point, by reducing the impact of greenhouse gases, whilst adaptation (changing in the light of new circumstances) meant learning to live with climate change. Another agreement made in the UNFCCC was the Paris Agreement, adopted by 196 parties in 2015. To limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius. Unfortunately, not all parties met the goals in reducing greenhouse gases, however, the Paris Agreement did make an overall impact on the progress toward preventing global temperatures from increasing. It can be identified there have been many attempts of mending climate change however, they haven’t always been successful.

For a long time, moral priority has been given to human needs, wants and interests, also known as anthropocentrism. In the words of John Locke human beings are ‘the masters and possessors of nature’. Kopnina, Washington, Taylor, and J Piccolo (2018) argued from a deep ecology point of view, that anthropocentrism (the belief that human needs and interests override moral and philosophical importance) should be rejected in all forms and ecocentrism should be embraced instead. Ecocentrism is a theoretical orientation that gives priority to the maintenance of ecological balance rather than the achievement of human ends. James Lovelock arguably holds pre-Christian spiritual beliefs about Mother Earth as seen in his Gaia hypothesis. Many theorists believe in an ecocentrism approach whereby the earth is more of a priority than human wants and desires. Although this approach and theory are very insightful and offer new ways of looking at climate change within a capitalist system, it won’t be achievable without the support of the masses.

Conclusion

Capitalism represents mankind’s ability to adapt and overcome problems. With that being said, many elements have been subdued such as the earth, as we bend it to our will. It has been found many problems have come from capitalism and resulted in environmental issues, such as overpopulation, excessive extraction of fossil fuels which has in hand caused conflict with various states, droughts lack of food supplies, and severe pollution. However, some attempts at solutions have been highlighted, such as taking an ecocentric approach, establishing international cooperation agreements and treaties, and the creating of alternative power supplies for goods such as cars. Although it can be argued a capitalist system cannot reverse the damage it has inflicted, it can implement different methods and ideas to make more sustainable choices for the earth’s long-term health. In conclusion, capitalism has operated as a problem in climate change. If humankind continues to utilize this powerful economic utensil, the comfortable world we have shaped for ourselves may snap under the strain.

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Essay on Climate Change and Capitalism

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