If you make more than $40,000 US per year you may think of yourself as middle class but the truth is that you are in fact part of the world’s richest 10%. This segment of the world's population generates 50% percent of the global emissions.
Recent analysis has revealed that there is actually more variation within countries in terms of carbon emissions than between countries. For example in the US, the poorest 10% have CO2 emissions of about 3.5 tonnes per year (similar to the emissions of an average person in India, Indonesia or Brazil), an average person has emissions of about 16.5 tonnes and the richest 10% have emissions of around 56.5 tonnes. In other words, within America, the top 10% of the population have, on average, emissions of 16 times that of the poorest 10% of the population. The key sources of emissions for the richest 10% are transportation and purchases.
This recent finding is important because of its policy implications. For example, according to economist Dr. Lucas Chancel if “a government levied an emissions tax across the population instead of focusing on the high-emitting wealthy, it would miss a big part of the emissions reductions it could achieve.”
To learn more read The Guardian article and look for your country in the graphs featured. You may find these facts surprising and a reminder of the role we all can play in fighting the climate crisis.