Human-caused climate change poses severe threats to life as we know it. "Global warming" does not just mean longer summers. Increased global temperatures make our oceans, weather, and ecosystems work in completely different ways. We can expect many parts of the world to experience intensified droughts, extreme weather events like hurricanes, and coastal flooding. These conditions will probably lead to increased conflict as access to food and clean water is undermined, health issues become more rampant, and people are forced to evacuate their homes.
Although climate change is a global concern, some people will fce more dire effects than others. The most vulnerable to climate change will be the poorest people in the poorest parts of the world. These people already suffer from food shortages, a lack of infrastructure, and few opportunities for employment outside of subsistance farming. Ironically, these people have contributed a tiny proportion of the climate-changing greenhouse gases that are altering our atmosphere. Those most responsible for climate change are the least vulnerable to its effects. Which begs the question—when it comes to climate change, who pays?
When we ask "who pays?" we are not just making a remark about how the first-and-worst to be affected by climate change are already paying for the emissions of industrialized nations, we are also prompting thoughts about how the international community should respond. What kind of climate change agreement would be fair? Who should pay (through cutting down on emissions and therefore, industry, and funding renewal and preparation projects) for international efforts to curb climate change?
View more of the work on this topic in my "Works in Progress" collection: https://www.behance.net/danielle_j1df0/wip
