COP29: Clean power must offer more hope to wean nations off fossil fuels
COP29 climate conference in Azerbaijan at the weekend as a sort of diplomatic echo of the US election result three weeks earlier.
In the US, progressives found themselves blocked by a surprisingly strong coalition of both traditional Republicans, and a faction of working class and non-White supporters whom they’d regarded, perhaps naively, as their natural allies. At the United Nations climate conference in Baku, rich nations found that efforts to reduce their own emissions and fund climate programs elsewhere in the world bought them little favor with developing countries most at risk of global warming.
Both situations are powerful examples of aspirational politics. Since the 19th century, conservatives have marketed themselves to the electorate by arguing that their policies were the best way to achieve the wealth and independence sought by working-class voters.
Those opposed to climate action make a similar pitch to low and middle-income nations: Environmentalism is a protectionist plot to keep poor nations poor. Only fossil fuels can provide the development you need to grow wealthy. Rich nations can never do enough to repay the carbon debt they’ve incurred.
It’s a potent argument because there’s a grain of truth to it. Consider the 86 countries the World Bank considers to be “high income.” After the traditional colonial powers of Europe, Japan, North America, and Oceania and their immediate neighbors in the Caribbean and Eastern Europe, the largest grouping are all petroleum exporters.
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