Outline. Setting the context. Setting the context 30/04/2016. Climate Justice

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1 Climate Justice Ensuring Equity and Fairness in Adaptation and Mitigation Responses to Climate Change Outline Setting the context: Climate crisis Fairness and Equity: Why should we care? So what is climate justice? Different approaches to climate justice Challenges after Paris Dr. Ethemcan Turhan Setting the context Setting the context 1

2 Setting the context Observed emissions & emissions scenarios The emission pledges submitted to the Paris climate summit avoid the worst effects of climate change (red), most studies suggest a likely temperature increase of about 3 C (brown) Over 1000 scenarios from the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report are shown Source: Fuss et al 2014; CDIAC; Global Carbon Budget 2015 Setting the context The top four emitters in 2014 covered 59% of global emissions China (27%), United States (15%), EU28 (10%), India (7%) However, when we adjust for consumption based emissions the figures change! Reasons for concern 2

3 Existing policies Pledges (INDC ler) Paris Agreement Preamble: Acknowledges [ ] COP21 Paris Agreement Target the importance for some of the concept of climate justice [ ] 3

4 Fairness and Equity Fairness and Equity: What should we care? Type and magnitude of regional climate change: Climate change is a global phenomenon but with a complex spatial pattern. For example, it may lead to increasing precipitation in some regions and to decreasing precipitation in others. Sensitivity to regional climate change: a given magnitude of climate change can cause very different biophysical impacts in different regions, depending on present climate and other environmental characteristics. For example, a warming of a few degrees may increase the agricultural potential in a cold region but decrease it in a region that is already very warm. Importance of climate sensitive activities: the relevance of climate change for a region and its economy is strongly influenced by the importance of climate sensitive sectors, systems, and activities. For example, ceteris paribus climate change will impact more strongly on countries where agriculture has a large share in the gross domestic product and the labour force than on countries where this share is small. Ability to cope and adapt: the ability of population groups to cope and adapt is a key determinant of their vulnerability to climate change. For example, a decrease in food production by 1/5 in a poor country may push large sections of the population into deep poverty and hunger whereas a wealthy country may avoid catastrophic impacts by compensating decreased domestic production with increased food purchases from abroad. Fairness and Equity Adaptation occurs at different but related levels. Policies shaped by national and international circumstances set objectives to be achieved at local and regional levels. Individuals and organisations however do not operate in isolation. Interpretation of information and its translation into decisions and behaviours are affected by social context, individual characteristics and direct experiences. In other words, adaptation is a multi scalar process of multilevel governance, concerned with the interaction of individual and collective behaviours acting from the bottom up and the top down in response to changing circumstances. 4

5 The UNFCCC does not provide a clear definition of what loss and damage from climate change actually is. Rather, the loss and damage mechanism which was established in Warsaw in 2013 is described as a sub category of a broader adaptation framework. The framework refers to things such as improving risk management, promoting better dialogue among institutions and enhancing practical actions such as technology transfer and better finance. But from this, it is not clear what type of environmental or social conditions qualify as a loss and damage scenario. Greenhouse Development Rights: A methodological approach for CJ A global climate policy framework for burden sharing Assigns obligations to countries based on aggregating the wealth and GHG emissions of their citizens Capacity (ability to pay) and responsibility (contribution to the problem) Combined Responsibility and Capacity Indicator (RCI) Excludes from consideration the wealth and emissions of poor individuals, below a development threshold Rich individuals are treated equally (have obligations) wherever they live In principle, an individually based right to development Key pillars of climate justice The Precautionary Principle states that 'where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation'. The principle of Equity and Common But Differentiated Responsibilities reflects the general acceptance by developed countries of their greater historical contribution to the accumulation of GHG emissions, in addition to their relatively greater resource capacity to develop and take remedial action. The Polluter Pays Principle. The utilisation cost of the atmosphere must be paid for proportionately by those who pollute it. All sectors of society should bear an appropriate costs. Access to the atmosphere should not be on the basis of vested interest power groupings or narrowly defined national self interest. Burdening the remainder of society with this cost in terms of additional fines, excessive costs or disproportionate changes in their quality of life is not acceptable. The Principle of Intergenerational Equity provides that 'the Parties should protect the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations. The cost of delayed or ineffective action on climate change will accrue to future generations 5

6 Four Challenges for Climate Justice What is a fair allocation of the costs of preventing the global warming that is still avoidable? What is a fair allocation of the costs of coping with the social consequences of the global warming that will not in fact be avoided? What background allocation of wealth would allow international bargaining to be a fair process? What is a fair allocation of emissions of greenhouse gases (over the long term and during the transition to the long term allocation)? So what is climate justice? Climate justice is more than mitigation So what is climate justice? First report mentioning climate justice in Rio Summit and United Nations Framework Convention (UNFCCC) General principles Equity (Article 3.1) Common but differentiated responsibilities CBDR (Article 3.1) Precautionary principle (Article3.3) Right to sustainable development (Madde 3.4) 6

7 So what is climate justice? Climate justice not only a moral issue: It is equally an economic, political and hence social issue. Climate justice demands focusing on the root causes of climate crisis (economic growth obsession of the global economy that is fuelled by unsustainable production, consumption and trade patterns) Real solutions depend on democratic responsibility, ecological sustainability and social justice. So what is climate justice? Three dimensions of climate justice (Ikeme, 2003): Compensatory / Corrective justice Ecological debt Climate debt / historical responsibility Distributive justice Greenhouse gas development rights Atmosphere as commons Procedural justice Fair and equitable representation Ecological debt In its simplest, colonial processes, capital accumulation and unequal geographical development led to uneven transfer of wealth from global South to global North. This transfer is two fold: (a) Ecological damage created by transfer of pollutants and extraction in a country that is felt in another territory/country. Damage caused beyond the national jurisdiction. (b) Appropriation of natural assets and labor of other countries by means of exploiting the fair share of others from global commons Climate debt / Historical responsibility a) (GtCO2) Greenhouse gas emissions b) Share of emissions (%) c) Share of population (%) d) Sustainable emissions share (GtCO2) Total climate debt (=ad) World Global North Global South Historical responsibility (GtCO2) Global North: All Annex 1 except Iceland, Lichtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco and Slovenia Global South: All non Annex countries (Ref: Warlenius, 2012) 7

8 Procedural justice under UNFCCC 3 conceptions of climate justice Different approaches to climate justice Academic / theoretical conceptions Agarwal & Narain (1990), Parks & Roberts (2006), Shue (2014) 8

9 3 conceptions of climate justice 3 conceptions of climate justice Then and now Inclusion Autonomy Transparency Compensation Sustainability are the key demands of global climate justice movement. Although these dimensions emerge from environmental justice, they differ/diversify their claims in scale and time (Schlosberg and Collins, 2014) we don t have backyards Co constitutive tendencies of climate justice (Chatterton et al., 2013) Antagonism Common(s) Learning from each other (Climate Camp, Drax occupation 2006 etc.) Solidarity #15M, Arab Spring, Occupy, Gezi Hardt (2013) argues that since 2011 different from previous nomadic global movements the new cycle of protests have been rooted in territory, demand a new definition of publicity and constitute commons beyond the false public/private separation. These occupations and encampments have provided a real ground where protestors constituted an inclusive and egalitarian togetherness characterized by their demands for real democracy. 9

10 Challenges after Paris What can be done in the near term to achieve climate justice? We must act now a carbon phase out must begin quickly and extend globally in order to be effective. This requires: 1. All Parties to the UNFCCC adopt the goal of an equitable carbon phase out by 2050 in the 2015 Paris Agreement and undertake to, in all climate actions respect human rights for all. 2. All countries engage in pro poor low carbon development, with a focus on pre 2020 climate action to ensure that the peak in global emissions is as soon as possible [and no later than 2020]. 3. Countries with the capacity to do so accelerate the provision of climate finance whilst protecting and increasing their aid budgets to enable pro poor, low carbon and climate resilient development in all countries. 4. Private sector investment is redirected away from fossil fuel intensive industries and towards sustainable alternatives. investment in clean, renewable technologies can close the global infrastructure gap in agriculture, transport, energy and water sectors 10

11 What can be done in the near term to achieve climate justice? An inclusive, fair, carbon phase out goal requires: 1. The international community to provide financial support for climate action and a wide range of just transition activities in developing countries. support for mitigation must not come at the expense of support for poverty reduction, adaptation, or compensation for loss and damage; even the most rapid possible phase out will not eliminate climate impacts and the most vulnerable need to be protected. 2. Fair contributions to climate action by all countries all countries must do their fair share. Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (indcs) must contain sufficient detail and justification to allow a comparison effort in terms of equity and adequacy. 3. Universal access to the necessary low carbon technologies be made available through appropriate rules and mechanisms relating to innovation and intellectual property What can be done in the near term to achieve climate justice? Democratic processes at all levels will be necessary to enable an equitable and inclusive carbon phase out that protects human rights. Governments should: 1. Dramatically increase investment in education, participation, access to information and capacity building, asmandatedinarticle6oftheunfccc, and Principle 10 of the rio Convention, to engage people around the world in climate action and sustainable development. 2. Strengthen the participation of a broad range of stakeholders in climate and sustainable development policy at all levels, including subnational and local government, business and civil society, including youth, persons with disability, women and indigenous peoples. 3. Ensure that policies to achieve a carbon phase out are gender sensitive and empower women as actors in climate action, poverty eradication and sustainable development. 4. Implement participatory rights and dispute resolution mechanisms, at international and national level, to limit the influence of vested interests in climate policy and address any human rights violations arising from climate actions Toolbox of climate justice: New alternatives are stemming: Blockadia, divestment and commoning (ie. Energy coops, re municipalization of services) Connections between different debates are sought (CJ degrowth transition) CJ movement determined to not let polluters go without paying the bill and that bill is no more only compensation (loss & damage). Demands yield way to constitutive acts Adaptation is increasingly becoming a topic for justice. Although the current state of affairs under UNFCCC promise a dire future for the most vulnerable segments of the global populations, CJ provides them an aperture to express their dissent. Questions? ethemcanturhan@sabanciuniv.edu 11