What this is about
Oxfam’s new report, Climate Plunder, exposes how the world’s richest one percent are not only responsible for a disproportionate share of carbon emissions, but also for shaping the very policies meant to stop them. As the planet passes the 1.5 °C threshold, billionaires and big corporations continue to profit from an economy that is literally overheating.
Why you should read this
Because it makes one thing crystal clear: the climate crisis is not just a technical or environmental issue — it’s a question of power. The people most responsible for global heating are the ones benefiting from it.
The world is burning, but the elite keep flying
According to Oxfam, 2024 was the first year the Earth’s average temperature stayed permanently above 1.5 °C. The remaining global carbon budget — the amount of CO₂ we can still emit while keeping warming under that limit — will be exhausted in just two years if emissions continue at current levels.
Since 1990, the richest one percent of people have consumed 15 percent of that remaining budget. The richest 0.1 percent have increased their per-capita emissions, while the poorest half of humanity has contributed almost nothing.
In 2024, billionaire investments generated 586 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalent — more than the annual emissions of 118 countries combined. Much of that money is tied up in oil, gas, and mining companies whose business models are aligned with a four-degree world, not a 1.5-degree one.
Climate policy, captured by power
Oxfam argues that the concentration of wealth and influence among the global elite is one of the biggest obstacles to climate action. Fossil fuel companies utilize legal mechanisms, such as Investor-State Dispute Settlement, to sue governments over environmental regulations. At international climate summits, fossil lobbyists routinely outnumber delegates from the most vulnerable nations.
The result is that those who did the least to cause the crisis — women, Indigenous communities, and people living in poverty — bear the heaviest costs through droughts, floods, and crop failures, while being largely excluded from decision-making.
What needs to change
Oxfam’s call to action is as bold as it is urgent: there can be no effective climate transition without redistributing wealth and power. The report sets out five key steps governments must take:
- Cut the emissions of the super-rich
Tax extreme wealth and corporate profits. End subsidies for fossil fuels and place levies on carbon-intensive luxury goods and services. - Curb their political influence
Ban fossil fuel lobbying from climate talks. Limit corporate political donations and impose strict rules against greenwashing and misinformation. - Strengthen democratic governance
Give civil society, Indigenous peoples, and local communities a genuine role in shaping climate policy. Protect civic space and media freedom. - Adopt a fair-share approach to the carbon budget
Rich countries must take historical responsibility by reducing emissions faster, sharing technology, and delivering promised climate finance to developing nations. - Build an economy that puts people and planet first
Move beyond market-driven solutions. Let governments lead public investment, promote equity, and redefine prosperity beyond profit.
A structural problem demands structural courage
Oxfam’s conclusion is stark: the climate crisis and the inequality crisis are inseparable. As long as the richest one percent write the rules, the world will move too slowly to avert catastrophe.
Yet the report remains cautiously hopeful. The tools for transformation already exist — renewable energy, fair taxation, democratic reform — but what’s missing is political courage.
The planet isn’t lost, but the era of voluntary promises is over.
In short:
Climate change isn’t just a natural disaster; it’s a business model. To cut emissions, we must also cut inequality. Only then can climate policy become not just a fight against CO₂, but a fight for justice.
