{"id":24016,"date":"2025-05-12T13:53:53","date_gmt":"2025-05-12T13:53:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/?p=24016"},"modified":"2025-05-12T13:53:54","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T13:53:54","slug":"welthiest-10-responsible-for-two-thirds-of-global-warming-since-1990","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/welthiest-10-responsible-for-two-thirds-of-global-warming-since-1990\/","title":{"rendered":"Welthiest 10% Responsible for Two-Thirds of Global Warming Since 1990"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-blockquote uagb-block-e7eb3fc3 uagb-blockquote__skin-border uagb-blockquote__stack-img-none\"><blockquote class=\"uagb-blockquote\"><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__content\">A new study has found that the wealthiest 10% of people globally are responsible for two-thirds of the observed global warming since 1990, underscoring the urgent need for targeted climate policies.<\/div><footer><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__author-wrap uagb-blockquote__author-at-left\"><\/div><\/footer><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-b0ffac9c wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-size:16px\" class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\">The University Network<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share uagb-social-share__outer-wrap uagb-social-share__layout-horizontal uagb-block-ee584a31\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-ec619ce7\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"facebook\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256c0 123.8 90.69 226.4 209.3 245V327.7h-63V256h63v-54.64c0-62.15 37-96.48 93.67-96.48 27.14 0 55.52 4.84 55.52 4.84v61h-31.28c-30.8 0-40.41 19.12-40.41 38.73V256h68.78l-11 71.69h-57.78V501C413.3 482.4 504 379.8 504 256z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-32d99934\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"twitter\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M389.2 48h70.6L305.6 224.2 487 464H345L233.7 318.6 106.5 464H35.8L200.7 275.5 26.8 48H172.4L272.9 180.9 389.2 48zM364.4 421.8h39.1L151.1 88h-42L364.4 421.8z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-1d136f14\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"linkedin\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M416 32H31.9C14.3 32 0 46.5 0 64.3v383.4C0 465.5 14.3 480 31.9 480H416c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3V64.3c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zM135.4 416H69V202.2h66.5V416zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5S80.9 96 102.2 96c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4V312c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9V416h-66.4V202.2h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9V416z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a striking new study <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41558-025-02325-x\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">published<\/a> in Nature Climate Change, researchers have quantified the climate impact of income inequality, revealing that the world&#8217;s wealthiest 10% are responsible for two-thirds of global warming since 1990. This development spotlights the disproportionately large carbon footprint of affluent individuals and their contributions to extreme climate events, such as heatwaves and droughts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Using an innovative modeling framework, the researchers combined economic data with climate simulations to trace emissions across different global income groups. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The findings? The top 1% of the wealthiest individuals globally have contributed 26 times the global average to monthly 1-in-100-year heat extremes and 17 times more to Amazon droughts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOur study shows that extreme climate impacts are not just the result of abstract global emissions, instead we can directly link them to our lifestyle and investment choices, which in turn are linked to wealth,&#8221; lead author Sarah Sch\u00f6ngart, an alumna of the 2024 Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP) and currently associated with ETH Zurich, said in a news release. &#8220;We found that wealthy emitters play a major role in driving climate extremes, which provides strong support for climate policies that target the reduction of their emissions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study underscores the significant disparity in emissions contributions between different income groups. Emissions from the wealthiest 10% in the United States and China alone have led to a two- to threefold increase in heat extremes in vulnerable regions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This drastically contrasts with the bottom 50% of the global population, whose emissions would have resulted in minimal additional warming since 1990.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf everyone had emitted like the bottom 50% of the global population, the world would have seen minimal additional warming since 1990,\u201d added co-author Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, who leads the Integrated Climate Impacts Research Group at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). \u201cAddressing this imbalance is crucial for fair and effective climate action.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study also points to the importance of addressing emissions embedded in financial investments, not just personal consumption. The researchers advocate for financial policies that target high-income individuals&#8217; portfolios as a strategy for achieving substantial climate benefits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is not an academic discussion \u2013 it\u2019s about the real impacts of the climate crisis today,\u201d Schleussner added. \u201cClimate action that doesn\u2019t address the outsize responsibilities of the wealthiest members of society, risks missing one of the most powerful levers we have to reduce future harm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The implications of this research are broad and significant. By highlighting the direct link between wealth and climate impacts, the study supports progressive policy instruments aimed at societal elites. Such policies not only reassign responsibility in line with actual emissions contributions but can also foster greater societal acceptance of climate action, thereby helping to provide much-needed support for adaptation in vulnerable countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study emerged from work done during Sch\u00f6ngart\u2019s YSSP project in 2024, for which she received the IIASA Levien award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The authors hope that their findings will fuel discussions and inspire policy changes aimed at reducing the disproportionate climate impact of the wealthiest, thus driving a more just and resilient response to our global climate crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:13px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/iiasa.ac.at\/news\/may-2025\/worlds-wealthiest-10-caused-two-thirds-of-global-warming-since-1990\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In a striking new study published in Nature Climate Change, researchers have quantified the climate impact of income inequality, revealing that the world&#8217;s wealthiest 10% are responsible for two-thirds of global warming since 1990. This development spotlights the disproportionately large carbon footprint of affluent individuals and their contributions to extreme climate events, such as heatwaves [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"single-no-separators","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[88,339],"class_list":["post-24016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-climate-and-environment","tag-eth-zurich","tag-international-institute-for-applied-systems-analysis-iiasa"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"The University Network","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/author\/funky_junkie\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"In a striking new study published in Nature Climate Change, researchers have quantified the climate impact of income inequality, revealing that the world&#8217;s wealthiest 10% are responsible for two-thirds of global warming since 1990. This development spotlights the disproportionately large carbon footprint of affluent individuals and their contributions to extreme climate events, such as heatwaves&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24016"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24016\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24106,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24016\/revisions\/24106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}