What Climate Justice Means And Why We Should Care

Resumen del libro

In this short accessible book, Elizabeth Cripps makes the moral and ethical case for action on climate change. She begins from the basic assertion that climate justice boils down to one simple truth: that each life has value. We therefore owe it to our fellow humans and non-human animals to save them from the catastrophic harm that climate change will inflict upon the planet. Cripps begins with a definition of climate justice, not just as an abstract idea but as something that should motivate us all. She then turns her attention to the morality of climate justice and the irrefutable science. She unravels the legacy of colonialism and entrenched racism, demonstrating the intersectional cost paid by women of colour (particularly from the Global South) who stand to lose the most from climate change and its associated destruction. Cripps then looks at our fellow animals and the case for preserving biodiversity and minimising the habitat loss caused by climate change. Having outlined the problem and delivered the bad news, the second half of the book looks at the solutions: who should pay the bill to fix climate change? How can we hold multinational companies, organisations even nations accountable? Should we? Cripps dissects the Paris Agreement and looks at its limits, feasibility and our motivations. The final chapter asks what it means to be an individual moral agent in a global crisis: whether making small changes matters (short answer, yes!), how many of us can come close to doing the right thing, and how the actions of those like Greta Thunberg and the children marching under the banner of FightClimateInjustice give us cause for hope. The book concludes with a series of short takeaways and a reading list. We all know we need to do more, but until now few books have concentrated on the philosophical and moral case for action. Cripps demonstrates that climate justice goes beyond politics - climate change is a moral duty, not a political choice.