Climate Justice, Colonialism and Climate Debt.edited
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Alfred State College *
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6102
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Geography
Date
Nov 24, 2024
Type
docx
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2
Uploaded by PresidentMaskPuppy23
Read:
Haque (2019) (How) Climate Change is a Hangover of Colonialism, Exploitation, and Slavery
Voskoboynik (2018) To fix the climate crisis, we must face up to our imperial past (part1), and
Colonialism can’t be forgotten – it’s still destroying peoples and our planet (part2)
Roberts and Parks (2009) (on BB)
Malm and Warlenius (2019) (on BB)
Haque (2019)
According to Haque, the unpleasant symptoms that occur after excessive intake of alcohol
describe the state humans have left the earth in. Usually, the symptoms of a hangover take time
to manifest. Rightfully so, it was only a matter of time before the earth started exhibiting the
symptoms of continuous exploitation. The current impacts of global warming are the earth's way
of showing its hangover symptoms. The earth is fatigued, it has a headache, and it is also
exhibiting signs of dizziness from the emissions and destruction human activities continue to
subject it to. This hangover can be traced back to colonialism, which promoted the exploitation
of the other among other heinous acts such as slavery. Haque mentions that the 10 percent rich in
the world are the 10 percent of the world that colonized, enslaved, and exploited the earth, and
this remains the same situation right now. Hence, climate change is a hangover of years of
slavery, imperialism, colonialism, and exploitation that still continues even now.
Voskoboynik (2018)
Voskoboynik, in his two articles, tackles colonialism head-on and without remorse. His view on
colonialism brands it as the key to all the current environmental and climate problems the globe
is undergoing. To others, it may appear as only the rush for riches and power by the Global north
states in their quest to make nature more profitable. Beneath the surface, colonialism turned out
to be a form of violence at the cultural, economic, and political levels. Despite some of the good
that people might attribute to colonialism and imperialism, they involved acts of cruelty
alongside wholesale destruction of the environment, cultures, people, among other things. The
end of colonialism saw the introduction of several narratives that intended to dilute its negative
impacts. However, Voskoboynik believes that one of its greatest impacts remains visible in the
way it affected nature and promoted the destruction of the planet and its peoples.
Roberts and Parks (2009)
Robert and Parks dissect the concept of ecologically unequal exchange in regard to the
oppression that developing countries have undergone under the capitalism and imperialism of
developed nations. While developed countries merry in the resources they grabbed from
developing countries, these developing countries remain in agony as they seek to climb the
socioeconomic hierarchy. This can be difficult to achieve considering that the developing
countries continue the most from the negative impacts of climate change. Hence, climate justice
is necessary considering that the actions of imperialism, colonialism, and capitalism have
resulted in negative consequences that have heavily affected underprivileged populations while
the North continues to prosper. It is also safe to say that the Global North is indebted to the
Global South because of the resources they retrieved from the south leaving the Global South at
an ecological deficit. Because of this ecologically unequal exchange, the Global North should
work towards Climate justice considering the ecological debt they owe.
Malm and Warlenius (2019)
Malm and Warlenius take an interesting approach in their elaboration of the Anthropocene
narrative caused by the ascension of humankind as the dominators of earth. Both the poor and
the rich have participated in the history of human evolution and how it has affected the earth.
Blaming human evolution as the major cause of climate change is a hit and miss. Those who are
demanding the repayment of the climate debt and risking their lives to protect the earth from
global warming are conscious of the damage human activities are causing both to the
environment and the atmosphere. The fact is that every living human being plays a part in fuel
energy consumption and emissions. However, the people who are to be blamed are largely those
within the gala of fossil energy gluttony who continuously ignore the consequences. They
continue to wreck the lives of others with their grand theft of the atmosphere.
Common Theme:
The earth cannot afford further luxury emissions. The reality is that
colonialism has shifted from the Global North colonizing the Global South and hoarding
resources to the colonization of the earth's atmosphere. The current state of emissions funded by
the resources primarily taken from the global south is greatly affecting the environment. A
disaster is pending if nothing is done and earth’s exploitation continues.
Question:
-
What would have been the state of the earth if the global south was never colonized and
exploited?
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Should we blame the current state of the earth on the first explorers or those who
continued in their tracks like the current industrial corporations, which are the ones
responsible for emissions directly destroying the atmosphere?
-
Is it safe to blame the nature of the human mind for what has transpired in regard to
humans evolving enough to understand that they can utilize their environments in various
ways?
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