Climate crisis: intra-national inequalities are also unjust
" But the West's carbon footprint is much higher.. " If you've ever engaged in a conversation about the climate crisis, chances are, this came up. Along with "But we need to develop" (about that in some other post), I find the allusion to the West's carbon emissions the most common red herring that hinders a constructive domestic climate conversation. These phrases are often thrown at me in an attempt to explain why we don't need, or can't afford, more climate action in India. In my (inadequate) personal experience, this phrase is most conveniently thrown by those who seem to be less vulnerable to the climate crisis than the average Indian, but who also emit more than the average Indian. The irony is palpable. Historical climate responsibility and per capita carbon emissions are incontrovertible metrics. By both accounts, India has contributed very little to causing the climate crisis. Add to that the fact that India has the highest social cos