Climate Justice Appeal

The climate crisis isn’t a natural disaster. It’s the man-made result of political power and profit-chasing by the wealthiest among us as they neglect those most in need.

And it doesn’t affect us all in the same way. It’s a complex web of injustice – with many threads to it. Threads that see communities who have done the least to cause the climate crisis, feeling the effects the most. Threads that see the poorest parts of the world being hit harder by extreme weather events, more often. Threads that make lives more dangerous for women and girls.

But together we can unravel these threads and challenge the injustice. Together we can work alongside communities, creating a better, fairer future for everyone.

Follow the threads and see the change that communities are already making.

It’s not fair that our ability to cope with the climate crisis is based on where we live, the resources we have available, and the value society places on our lives.

In 2017, Oxfam found a concerning trend over the last ten years. There have been more weather-related disasters, and this has become the number one reason for internal displacement.

This has resulted in more than 20 million people being forced to leave their homes every year. That’s like one person every two seconds.

Wealthy countries have contributed most to the climate crisis and have the most resources to address it.

In 2019, the super-rich 1% were responsible for 16% of global carbon emissions, which is the same as the emissions of the 66% of lowest-income people (5 billion people).

It’s a shocking fact. But even more shocking is that the richest 1% burned through twice as much of the carbon budget as the lowest-income half of humanity combined.

Oxfam is unravelling this web of injustice, thread by thread – and calling on wealthy countries to:

• Make the biggest and wealthiest polluters pay the highest price for their climate-wrecking behaviour. They can start by taxing high-polluting luxuries like private jets to help pay for their climate destruction.
• Reduce their greenhouse emissions the fastest and furthest, particularly by replacing fossil fuels with cleaner energy sources.
• Provide financial and technical support to low-emitting, lower-income countries that have contributed the least crisis and lack resources.