April 29 - Inequality - Questions

[jamesallenevans]

Questions for Dipesh Chakrabarty, inspired by the week's readings:

Anil Agarwal and Sunita Narain, “Global Warming in an Unequal World: a case of environmental colonialism. download” Centre for Science and Environment, 1991. Hannes Bergthaller, “Thoughts on Asia and the Anthropocene download.” The Anthropocenic Turn, 2020. Dipesh Chakrabarty, “Planetary Crises and the Difficulty of Being Modern. download” Millennium: Journal of International Studies, 2018.

Questions: Every week students will post one question here of less than 150 words, addressed to our speaker by Wednesday @ midnight, the day immediately prior to our class session. These questions may take up the same angle as developed further in your weekly memo. By 2pm Thursday, each student will up-vote (“thumbs up”) what they think are the five most interesting questions for that session. Some of the top voted questions will be asked by students to the speakers during class.

[abertodano]

If Western countries present a pattern for unsustainable economic development, how should developing countries change that pattern? Does quality of life have to go down, or just waste? To what degree can the quality and cheapness of medicine, energy, electronics, etc. available to the very few be maintained for the many? Would solutions like a more equitable pharmaceutical industry, clean energy, stopping planned-obsolence, and curtailing wealth hoarding be enough, or are significant cuts to everyone's economic potential necessary?

[jcrary711]

Do you think it is possible for third world countries to continue to develop at a reasonable rate while also performing climate conscious behaviors? While it may not necessarily be fair to individuals in these third world countries, in what ways would they be able to continue developing while also preventing climate change?

[apolissky]

It seems we are in a Catch 22, on one hand, it all but obvious that wealthy nations are not only responsible for a lot of the environmental destruction we see around us, but have also benefited the most from the decisions to ignore the environment. Yet it is clear that we can not let developing nations continue on the same path the US and others have. So what do the US and EU countries do to help the developing nations?

[BuffDawg]

Could a world of open borders where countries compete for the best or most productive citizens enable more competition in labor, raising global wages?

[chakrabortya]

Asia’s role in the Anthropocene is largely attributable to its rapidly growing middle-class consumption. Middle-class people are defined as those with a household income sufficient to purchase consumer durables (such as refrigerators, washing machines or motorcycles). I wanted to push back on this definition. How have our conceptions of the middle class changed over the past two decades? What technologies or items should we consider in order to create a more holistic indicator of “middle-classness?” Should this definition be globally homogenous?

[smichel11]

When we think about how globalized the world is and about the existential problems we all currently face, what responsibilities do we have for ourselves? For our local/national communities? For the global society? How do we balance these interests?

[brettkatz]

Do you believe the world will reach a point at which countries coalesce into a global governance? At what point do you think such a governance can be reached (think the UN in "The Expanse" if you get the reference)? Similarly, at what point do you think our control over the climate will become so great that we can reverse the impacts of climate change to pre-industrial levels - do you think this is even possible?

[shiruan-uchicago]

The readings (Chakrabarty 2018; Agarwal 1991) this week mainly focus on global inequality and justice in face of the existential crises of human being as a whole, such as global warming. I wonder how the lecturer will unpack the (interactional) relation between the domestic environmental inequality and deprivation, and the global/trans-national inequality, in the era of fossil-fuel-driven industrial capitalism. The “modernized”/industrialized way of life in Shanghai, for example, shows more resemblance to the Global North than to the rural rest of the developing Asia. Thus in terms of climate change, there are a global injustice structure and a series of provincialized injustice structures sharing the similar patterns with and being embedded in the former.

[kaiyamerz]

With so much of global inequality having its roots in colonialism, the same murky depths from whence capitalism was born, I am scarcely able to imagine a world where countries like the US, which rely on the capitalistic exploitation of other countries, will be able to solve these issues of global inequality. We can even see this playing out in real time right now with the COVID-19 vaccine distribution to developing countries. Do you think that global inequality is solvable under the capitalist system? If so, how do we incentivize companies to do things which are actually good for people, rather than just for their bottom line?

[Brunofireflame]

How much merit is there to the idea that the "younger generation" is responsible for solving the climate issue? In what I've seen it's nonsensical but I wanted to hear your own esperiences with this mindset.

[brycefarabaugh]

While advanced industrialized economies in the West clearly have a role to play in mitigating existential risks like climate change given the amount of greenhouse gas emissions attributed to them since the Industrial Revolution, what role should they play in helping the developing world decarbonize their economies? Could clean energy technology transfers be one form of “foreign aid” that would help address climate change while simultaneously improving their economic outlook?

[Aiden-Reynolds]

What are the methods that would be most effective in forcing major international actors to focus on equity when considering climate change? Is it realistically possible for the international community to come to an equitable solution for any global crisis like the current pandemic, or will unequal political influence and resources always result in unequal solutions?

[nataliamedina1202]

Toning in on a nation-level scale of inequality, my question is: Considering that the United States is already facing numerous climate change consequences (flooding/disappearance of parts of Louisiana, raging wildfires across California, rising severity of hurricanes in Florida, etc), what does the future look like for the people firstly affected by these natural disasters? Who is responsible for providing the necessary aid for such vulnerable populations in the US, and how will those with the least resources suffer disproportionally? Further, how will race, ethnicity, and social class play into these inequalities when it comes to questions of emergencies and survival?

[LucLampietti]

What aspects of our understanding of modernity must go to the wayside for a sustainable future? What aspects can remain? (e.g. does the American dream of owning a house instead of an apartment, or a car instead of a transit pass have to die for us to live?)

[gracecwagner]

Equality and Equity are two different things, and when if we achieve equality, there will still be shortcomings because of the range of needs that people need in different climates, cultures, and other circumstances. Do you have any thoughts on how to achieve equity, if it's even possible?

[smshiffrin]

What are your thoughts on the Romantic views on the environment that see nature as something precious that must be protected and saved? How does this influence social inequality that would arise from climate disaster, seeing as those who see nature as something for enjoyment and leisure tend to be middle class?

[ABacotti]

I am curious about what your thoughts would be on ensuring a governmental structural holds a "non-anthropocentric view of the world," and what that may look like? What governmental structure, agencies, securities, or laws would be necessary to manifest your proposed way of looking at the world into action?

[madelman99]

One of the clearest problems regarding the framing of climate change is that third world and developing nations cannot depend on the research of western institutions to present a true picture of the global climate situation and safeguard their interests. What needs to take place for developing nations to undertake their own research in this crucial area?