Climate change in an industrialized world

Immediate and decisive action is required to reduce anthropological emissions and to mitigate the impacts that are shaping our world today. With rapidly declining biodiversity, increasing compound extreme events and an ever-growing divide between the rich and poor, ignorance is not an excuse and willful inaction is a crime. Nevertheless, a turbulent economic climate and a stalling post-pandemic recovery has pushed many into financial hardship – in these instances, the fight against climate change becomes a minor preoccupation.

The notions of incessant economic growth and sustainable development ingrained in our collective consciousness are not mutually inclusive. The industry, production and mass consumption that make our economic world go round strain the Earth and its climate. Yet, the need to achieve both results in a paradoxical conflict of macroeconomic and climate objectives for governments and policymakers; a conflict exploited by an increasing populist right-wing rhetoric – such as in the Netherlands, Argentina and the upcoming U.S. election – that disregards climate emergencies in favor of short-term economic gain.

  Economic policies and cultural consensus need to shift from seeking to maximize growth to achieveing a more inclusive and sustainable future. We need to strive to strike a balance between the two: economic growth cannot come at the expense of our future.