Global Inequality: Redistributing Income & CO2 Emissions - A Quantitative Thought Experiment
(2024) EKHS21 20241Department of Economic History
- Abstract
- This thesis is a thought experiment challenging the status quo by exploring how greater income equality between countries does not necessarily lead to higher CO2 emissions. Based on a theoretical framework linking income increases to CO2 emissions, it is expected that greater income equality will lead to higher consumption, but CO2 emissions will not increase proportionally. Using data on Gross National Income (GNI) per capita and carbon footprint for 123 countries from 2000-2022, a three-step methodology is applied: redistributing GNI per capita, estimating the relationship between income and CO2 emissions, and predicting the CO2 emissions resulting from the redistribution of GNI per capita. The analysis reveals that halving the deviation... (More)
- This thesis is a thought experiment challenging the status quo by exploring how greater income equality between countries does not necessarily lead to higher CO2 emissions. Based on a theoretical framework linking income increases to CO2 emissions, it is expected that greater income equality will lead to higher consumption, but CO2 emissions will not increase proportionally. Using data on Gross National Income (GNI) per capita and carbon footprint for 123 countries from 2000-2022, a three-step methodology is applied: redistributing GNI per capita, estimating the relationship between income and CO2 emissions, and predicting the CO2 emissions resulting from the redistribution of GNI per capita. The analysis reveals that halving the deviation from the global mean GNI per capita could elevate all countries to at least upper-middle-income status while reducing global CO2 emissions by approximately 10.2%. These findings suggest that economic equity and environmental sustainability can coexist. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9168681
- author
- Lauth, Mathilde LU
- supervisor
-
- Jutta Bolt LU
- organization
- course
- EKHS21 20241
- year
- 2024
- type
- H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
- subject
- keywords
- Income Redistribution, Global Inequality, CO2 Emissions, Planetary Boundaries, Gross National Income (GNI), Carbon Footprint, Consumption Patterns, Climate Change.
- language
- English
- id
- 9168681
- date added to LUP
- 2024-07-03 07:07:30
- date last changed
- 2024-07-03 07:07:30
@misc{9168681,
abstract = {{This thesis is a thought experiment challenging the status quo by exploring how greater income equality between countries does not necessarily lead to higher CO2 emissions. Based on a theoretical framework linking income increases to CO2 emissions, it is expected that greater income equality will lead to higher consumption, but CO2 emissions will not increase proportionally. Using data on Gross National Income (GNI) per capita and carbon footprint for 123 countries from 2000-2022, a three-step methodology is applied: redistributing GNI per capita, estimating the relationship between income and CO2 emissions, and predicting the CO2 emissions resulting from the redistribution of GNI per capita. The analysis reveals that halving the deviation from the global mean GNI per capita could elevate all countries to at least upper-middle-income status while reducing global CO2 emissions by approximately 10.2%. These findings suggest that economic equity and environmental sustainability can coexist.}},
author = {{Lauth, Mathilde}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Global Inequality: Redistributing Income & CO2 Emissions - A Quantitative Thought Experiment}},
year = {{2024}},
}