NEW DELHI– The world’s wealthiest 10 percent are contributing significantly more to global warming than the poorest half of the population, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. The research reveals that this top income group is responsible for two-thirds of the global warming observed since 1990, intensifying climate extremes such as heat waves and droughts.
“Our study shows that extreme climate impacts are not just the result of abstract global emissions. We can directly link them to our lifestyle and investment choices, which in turn are linked to wealth,” said lead author Sarah Schongart of ETH Zurich in Switzerland.
The study, conducted by an international team of scientists from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Australia, analyzed the disproportionate contributions of high-emitting individuals and their influence on extreme weather events. It found that the top 1 percent of global earners contributed 26 times more than the average person to the increase in rare, high-temperature events and 17 times more to droughts in regions like the Amazon.
The findings highlight a deepening divide in climate responsibility, revealing how the consumption patterns and financial investments of the wealthy are driving climate injustice—particularly in vulnerable tropical regions such as Southeast Asia, southern Africa, and the Amazon basin, areas that historically have contributed the least to global emissions but are suffering the worst effects.
“If everyone on Earth had emitted like the bottom 50 percent of the global population, the world would have experienced minimal additional warming since 1990,” said co-author Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, head of the Integrated Climate Impacts Research Group at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria.
Importantly, the study stresses that the problem extends beyond personal consumption. A significant portion of high-income individuals’ emissions are embedded in their financial investments and portfolios, which support carbon-intensive industries.
Researchers argue that climate policy must focus more directly on regulating the financial activities of the wealthy to effectively curb emissions. Redirecting capital away from polluting investments could yield major climate benefits and promote greater environmental equity on a global scale. (Source: IANS)
