Climate Justice: A fair share of the Atmosphere is available here

The new report from Friends of the Earth highlights how many people in the Global South are already experiencing devastating impacts of climate change with impacts upon food security, water security, health and livelihoods. Climate change is therefore creating a global human rights crisis which will be much worse without deep and immediate reductions in emissions.

 The Climate Justice guide highlights that while the world’s poor are disproportionately feeling the effects of climate change, it has been the over-consumption of industrialised nations that has caused it. At present, Australians are one of the highest per capita emitters of greenhouse gases. We therefore have a moral responsibility firstly to make deep cuts in our emissions and also to take responsibility for the plight of other nations.

 While climate change may be a distant threat for some, for many Pacific Islanders and Torres Strait Islanders, it is a harsh and immediate reality. In January of next year, the people of the Carteret Islands in Papua New Guinea will begin relocating to Bougainville. They are making history as some of the first Pacific atolls made uninhabitable by climate change. “We are victims of something that we are not responsible for. We are bearing the brunt of all these gas emissions” said Bernard Galie from Piul Island in the Carterets.

With predictions of many more ‘climate refugees’ like the Carteret Islanders at 150 million worldwide and 1 million from small island states by 2050, there is a pressing need to address this issue. Yet at present there is no legal recognition for climate refugees internationally, nor in Australia. “Part of our responsibility in addressing climate change lies in recognising climate refugees as a group with a rightful claim to our protection and sanctuary. Australia should also be providing funding for people who need to relocate within their own countries. Working within the UN to ensure appropriate recognition of climate refugees in new or existing conventions is also an important role Australia can and should be playing” says Emma Brindal from Friends of the Earth.

“Additionally, in order to assist poorer nations in adapting to the impacts of climate change, the Australian government needs to increase our Overseas Development Assistance (ODA). The increases in aid announced earlier this year, which will bring Australia’s aid up to 0.35% of Gross National Income (GNI), are far below the internationally agreed upon level of 0.7% of GNI” says Ms Brindal

The publication states that Australia needs to reduce emissions by at least 80% on 1990 levels by 2050, which can be achieved by reducing consumption and using sustainable renewable energy sources. It argues that “clean” coal and nuclear power are dangerous distractions to implementing the real solutions to climate change which already exist. These include a combination of renewable energy sources as well as energy efficiency measures, both of which can enable us to achieve the emissions reductions necessary. Friends of the Earth says that governments must legislate for these changes and calls on the federal government to begin by ratifying the Kyoto Protocol and committing to emission targets.

Individually, Australians also need to reduce our consumptive lifestyles in order to achieve a fair and equitable share of sustainable resource use for all people. When both governments and individuals take serious action to reduce our emissions and help our neighbours to deal with the potentially catastrophic impacts, Australia will be on the way to addressing our responsibilities to the people of the Global South and preventing this imminent humanitarian crisis.

Further details, Emma Brindal emma.brindal@foe.org.au