Professor Sonia Seneviratne:

I wanted to comment on climate justice and I will give a presentation on the topic this weekend. I was invited to do so by churches of different denominations. This is a really important dimension. There are three main parts and perhaps this would also help to frame the social discourse on climate change.

One concerns developing versus developed countries. Some countries are already developed. There is a limited budget and as some countries have not developed, is it fair they have a limited amount of emissions? There are other related aspects, such as where there are rich and poor regions in the same country. This relates to adaptation. Persons in the West tend to emit more as they might travel more but they could possibly adapt more by moving elsewhere; poorer people would have more difficulties in adapting. The last point about intergenerational injustice is really important.

Perhaps we should communicate more about the fact that, in some ways, it is a problem we are leaving to younger generations. There is an association in Switzerland, Grandparents for the climate. In terms of communications, perhaps these are areas where we do something.