Capitalism and Climate

Recently, Western governments have been showing the extent to which they prioritise the profits of faceless corporations, over the lives and wellbeing of the citizens of the entire planet. The poison of capitalism has pervaded our system so utterly and completely, that even while in the UK, the government has claimed that it is a world leader on matters of climate and emissions, it was recently exposed that the government had been covertly investing billions in fossil fuels operations in other countries, the emissions from which total that of the entire country of Portugal- 69 million tons a year. All this while we continue to denounce 3rd world countries who adopt fossil fuels. We act shocked when this kind of situation occurs, as it does so frequently. Always the same surprised reaction, even though we live under an economic system that encourages it, an economic system that rewards greed, deceit and the exploitation of the planet itself and all its inhabitants. The self destructive nature of capitalism is so apparent that even one of its would be fervent supporters- Forbes magazine, cannot hide from the truth. They’ve run a story with the headline- ‘Unless It Changes, Capitalism Will Starve Humanity By 2050’.

There is no such thing as ethical capitalism. The fossil fuel industry has known about the role of its products in global warming for 60 years. The fossil fuel group Exxon was commissioned itself to conduct research into it, and their own scientists warned their managers 40 years ago of “potentially catastrophic events”. Yet rather than alerting the public or taking action, these companies have spent the past few decades pouring millions of dollars into disinformation campaigns designed to delay action. All the while, the science is clear that climate-catalyzed damages have worsened, storms have intensified, and droughts and heatwaves have become more frequent and severe, while forests have been damaged and wildfires have burned through the country. These companies will lie, exploit and destroy until their final breath, which is why we must make that breath come soon.

The steps required are clear:

• Companies, banks, institutions and governments should halt all investment in fossil fuel investment and extraction.

• Immediately end all fossil fuel subsidies

• Immediately exit from fossil fuels

However, this will not be easy, as many governments, such as the US, operate a pseudo-democratic plutocracy, where money rules, and the freedom that they claim to have in such abundance, is suppressed unequivocally when it clashes with corporate interests. For example Texas’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Act went into effect on 1 September, stiffening civil and criminal penalties specifically for protesters who interrupted operations of oil and gas corporations. This is just one of the many cases that show the stranglehold that corporate money has on both our political system and our human rights. Peaceful protesters are now going to be given prison sentences of up to 10 years and fines of up to $500,000, if they exercise their right to protest in the so called land of the free.

This all goes to show, capitalism will not work against climate change. If we want to make progress on a global issue, the effects of which will disproportionately affect the world’s poorest, rather than fossil fuels CEOs hugely responsible for it, we must make a transition. A transition from a cut throat system that rewards deceit and exploitation, to one that does not. However, seeing as the UK's recently elected PM is a self-serving, immoral liar with zero integrity, this is unlikely. As I have previously stated it is empirically clear that his public backing for climate change combat is purely a facade, we must look at what we can do as individuals. It is not fair that we should shoulder the burden of saving this planet that has been raped with such reckless abandon by previous generations. It isn’t fair that we must make sacrifices ourselves to combat this issue while studies have shown that just 100 companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions.

Sammy Cholmondeley