A study conducted by Oxfam International has revealed that the top 1% wealthiest individuals in the world, comprising 77 million people, are responsible for emitting the same amount of greenhouse gases as two-thirds of the poorest people, totaling 5 billion individuals. The concern extends beyond individual consumption, as affluent individuals often invest in environmentally polluting industries.

The Climate Equity: A Planet for the 99% report, based on research by the Stockholm Environmental Institute, underscores the unequal responsibility for the climate crisis and calls for progressive policies, such as taxes on unsustainable investments and frequent flights.

The report examined consumption-related emissions across different income groups up to 2019. One key finding is that the top 1% wealthiest people globally (77 million individuals) contribute to 16% of global emissions associated with their consumption—a percentage equivalent to 66% of the world's lowest-income population, numbering 5.11 billion people.

The income threshold for the top 1% wealthiest people varies by country based on purchasing power parity. For example, in the USA, the threshold would be $140,000, while in Kenya, it would be $40,000.

Country-specific analyses also painted a grim picture. In France, the top 1% wealthiest emits the same amount of carbon dioxide in a year as the bottom 50% poorest do in ten years. Bernard Arnault, billionaire and founder of Louis Vuitton, the richest man in France, has an environmental impact 1,270 times greater than the average French citizen, not accounting for greenhouse gas emissions associated with his investments.

The report notes that public attention often focuses on individual consumption-related carbon emissions, though emissions linked to the investments of affluent individuals in polluting industries far exceed their personal consumption. Oxfam's research indicates that wealthy investors frequently choose to invest in polluting industries at the same rate as other investors, with billionaires doing so twice as often as the average investor on the Standard & Poor 500 list.

The primary message of the report calls for progressive policy actions. It suggests implementing measures such as a tax on frequent air travel (more than 10 times a year) and a tax on non-environmentally friendly investments, significantly higher than the tax on environmentally friendly investments. Therefore, the report's authors advocate for the implementation of taxes and regulations that reward environmentally friendly behavior and penalize non-eco-friendly actions.

"Being wealthier makes it easier to cut both personal and investment emissions. You don't need a third car, a fourth holiday, or investments in the cement industry," summarized co-author Max Lawson.