Thread by @timparrique

If you think inequality is only a matter of income, think again – and check this study on energy inequality by @yl_oswald, @dr_anneowen, and @JKSteinberger.

THREAD/

1/ The richer a country, the bigger its energy footprint.

2/ Failure in economic inclusion causes exclusion from energy provision. Also: when expenditure is highly unequal in a country, the corresponding inequality in energy footprints will tend to be even larger.

3/ Consumption categories that feature higher energy intensities and higher elasticities, such as vehicle fuel, concentrate energy use among high-income individuals.

4/ What should be degrown? Answer: what’s in the red box, namely high-intensity goods and services only consumed by the richest.

5/ There are ~550 million people in each decile, so roughly the equivalent of today’s European Union. The top 10% consume ~39% of total final energy (nearly equivalent to the consumption of the bottom 80%), whereas the lowest 10% consume almost 20 times less, ~2%.

6/ The top 10% uses 75% for air transport. Said differently: flying is a luxury only used by the rich.

7/ The energy footprints of the richest reach 200-300 GJ yr. (...) On the other hand, 77% of people consume less than 30Gjyr and 38% consume less than 10Gjyr – this lower end is almost certainly insufficient for a decent quality of life.

8/ Economic growth aggravates inequality.

9/ 31% of the energy increase can be attributed to vehicle fuel alone, another 33% to heat and electricity and another 12% together to other transport and the education and finance and other luxury category. Other subsistence such as food and wearables, together, contribute 7%.

10/ Take-home message: We won’t solve the climate crisis without addressing national and international inequality.

nature.com/articles/s4156…

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