Intergenerational Climate Justice and Basic Needs
Intergenerational Climate Justice and Basic Needs
Disciplines
Philosophy, Ethics, Religion (90%); Economics (10%)
Keywords
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Basic Needs,
Climate Change,
Intergenerational Justice
Climate change is characterized by a temporally unequal distribution of benefits and costs. While most of the advantages of emission-generating activities are derived by currently living people, most of the harms that these activities cause will only materialize in the (distant) future. There is thus strong reason for considering climate change a matter of intergenerational justice. The most pressing question of intergenerational climate justice concerns the present generations relation to future generations. Do we owe future generations to adopt additional measures against climate change and its harmful consequences? And if yes, to what extent and in which way? Scholars have addressed this question from the perspectives of various principles of intergenerational justice. There is one plausible principle that has so far been widely neglected, though. According to this principle, the present generation ought to enable future generations to meet their basic needs for example, their needs for water, food and health. The aim of our project is to contribute to assessing states climate-related intergenerational duties of justice from the perspective of this particular principle. First, we develop a clear, plausible and workable version of the principle (which involves defining the concept of basic needs, determining the actual basic needs and basic needs satisfiers of present and future generations, and examining the social discounting of future basic needs and the moral implications of scarcity). And second, we investigate which scientific models and studies would be necessary for this principle to be able to provide concrete and realistic ethical guidance with regard to climate change (which involves identifying climate change measures that are feasible or soon-to-be feasible, investigating how to best model the effects of business as usual and these measures on future generations ability to meet their basic needs, and examining how to assess the empirical assumptions of arguments for discounting and from scarcity).
Climate change is characterized by a temporally unequal distribution of benefits and costs. While most of the advantages of emission-generating activities are derived by currently living people, most of the harms that these activities cause will only materialize in the (distant) future. There is thus strong reason for considering climate change a matter of intergenerational justice. The most pressing question of intergenerational climate justice concerns the present generations relation to future generations. Do we owe future generations to adopt additional measures against climate change and its harmful consequences? And if yes, to what extent and in which way? Scholars have addressed this question from the perspectives of various principles of intergenerational justice. There is one plausible principle that has so far been widely neglected, though. According to this principle, the present generation ought to enable future generations to meet their basic needs for example, their needs for water, food and health. The aim of our project is to contribute to assessing states climate-related intergenerational duties of justice from the perspective of this particular principle. First, we develop a clear, plausible and workable version of the principle (which involves defining the concept of basic needs, determining the actual basic needs and basic needs satisfiers of present and future generations, and examining the social discounting of future basic needs and the moral implications of scarcity). And second, we investigate which scientific models and studies would be necessary for this principle to be able to provide concrete and realistic ethical guidance with regard to climate change (which involves identifying climate change measures that are feasible or soon-to-be feasible, investigating how to best model the effects of business as usual and these measures on future generations ability to meet their basic needs, and examining how to assess the empirical assumptions of arguments for discounting and from scarcity).
- Universität Graz - 100%
- Thomas Schinko, International Institute for Applied System Analysis (IIASA) , national collaboration partner
- Harald Stelzer, Universität Graz , national collaboration partner
- Elfriede Ortrud Leßmann, Universität Salzburg , national collaboration partner
- Jeremy Moss, University of New South Wales - Australia
- Gillian Brock, University of Auckland - New Zealand
- Stephen Gardiner, University of Washington - USA
- David Copp, University of California at Davis - USA
- Clarke Wolf, University of Iowa - USA
- Jennifer Cole Wright, College of Charleston - USA
- Dale W. Jamieson, New York University - USA
- Ian Gough, London School of Economics and Political Science - United Kingdom
- Matthew Rendall, Nottingham University - United Kingdom
- Edward Page, The University of Warwick - United Kingdom
- Simon Caney, The University of Warwick - United Kingdom
- Liam Shields, University of Manchester - United Kingdom
- David Miller, University of Oxford - United Kingdom
Research Output
- 87 Citations
- 33 Publications
- 1 Disseminations
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2021
Title Teaching & learning guide for: Basic needs in normative contexts DOI 10.1111/phc3.12736 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Philosophy Compass Link Publication -
2021
Title Handbuch Philosophie und Armut DOI 10.1007/978-3-476-05740-2_4 Type Book Chapter Publisher J.B. Metzler -
2021
Title Crisis and Critique: Philosophical Analysis and Current Events - Proceedings of the 42nd International Ludwig Wittgenstein Symposium DOI 10.1515/9783110702255-024 Type Book Chapter Publisher De Gruyter -
2023
Title Exploring Intergenerational Climate Resilience: A Basic Needs-Based Conception DOI 10.1080/21550085.2023.2166343 Type Journal Article Author Petz D Journal Ethics, Policy & Environment Pages 299-315 Link Publication -
2023
Title Sebo, Jeff: Saving Animals, Saving Ourselves: Why Animals Matter for Pandemics, Climate Change, and Other Catastrophes DOI 10.1007/s10677-023-10401-4 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Ethical Theory and Moral Practice Pages 485-488 -
2023
Title Basic Needs DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-6519-1_1052 Type Book Chapter Author Pölzler T Publisher Springer Nature Pages 221-227 -
2022
Title Who Needs Needs? Defining a Contested Concept. Lessico di Etica Pubblica 12/1; In: Lessico di Etica Pubblica 12/1 Type Book Chapter Author Pinzani Pages 91-105 -
2022
Title The Oxford Handbook of Intergenerational Ethics DOI 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190881931.013.23 Type Book Chapter Publisher Oxford University Press -
2022
Title Handbuch Gemeinwohl DOI 10.1007/978-3-658-21086-1_28-1 Type Book Chapter Publisher Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden -
2022
Title A Philosophical Perspective on Folk Moral Objectivism Type Postdoctoral Thesis Author Thomas Pölzler -
2022
Title Fairness critically conditions the carbon budget allocation across countries DOI 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2022.102481 Type Journal Article Author Meyer L Journal Global Environmental Change -
2021
Title Climate Justice, Inherited Benefits, and Status Quo Expectations; In: Principles of Justice and Real-World Climate Politics Type Book Chapter Author Meyer Publisher Rowman Littlefield Pages 115-148 -
2021
Title COVID Pandemic and Climate Change: An Essay on Soft Constraints and Risks.; In: Climate Justice and Feasibility: Normative Theorizing, Feasibility Constraints, and Climate Action Type Book Chapter Author De Araujo Publisher Rowman Littlefield Pages 213-238 -
2021
Title Intergenerational Justice; In: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Type Book Chapter Author Meyer Link Publication -
2021
Title Basic needs in normative contexts DOI 10.1111/phc3.12732 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Philosophy Compass Link Publication -
2021
Title Toby Ord, The Precipice: Existential Risk and the Future of Humanity, Bloomsbury, 2020 DOI 10.1007/s10677-021-10181-9 Type Journal Article Author Namdar B Journal Ethical Theory and Moral Practice Pages 855-857 -
2020
Title Sectoral carbon budgets as an evaluation framework for the built environment DOI 10.5334/bc.32 Type Journal Article Author Steininger K Journal Buildings and Cities Pages 337-360 Link Publication -
2022
Title The typicality effect in basic needs DOI 10.1007/s11229-022-03859-9 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Synthese Pages 382 Link Publication -
2022
Title Sharing the effort of the European Green Deal among countries DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-31204-8 Type Journal Article Author Steininger K Journal Nature Communications Pages 3673 Link Publication -
2024
Title Climate Justice: Theoretical Foundations and Practical Applications Type Book Author Meyer Publisher Guangxi University Press -
2024
Title Needs in moral and political philosophy; In: Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy Type Book Chapter Author Miller -
2024
Title The Political Philosophy of Internal Displacement DOI 10.1093/oso/9780192899859.003.0003 Type Book Chapter Publisher Oxford University PressOxford -
2024
Title Compensation for Historic Injustice: Does it Matter how the Victims Respond? DOI 10.1007/s11158-024-09663-1 Type Journal Article Author Miller D Journal Res Publica -
2024
Title Bedürfnisbasierte Suffizienzauffassung Intergenerationelle Bewertung von Risiken des Umgangs mit dem Klimawandel DOI 10.33196/juridikum202403042701 Type Journal Article Author Meyer L Journal Zeitschrift für kritik - recht - gesellschaft -
2023
Title Babeuf, François-Noël DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-6519-1_584 Type Book Chapter Author Roza S Publisher Springer Nature Pages 209-212 -
2022
Title Basic Needs DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-6730-0_1052-1 Type Book Chapter Author Pölzler T Publisher Springer Nature Pages 1-6 -
2022
Title Justiça intergeneracional; In: Textos Selecionados de Teorias da Justiça, Vol III. Pelotas. NEPFIL Online (Série Investigação Filosófica) Type Book Chapter Author Meyer Publisher Oliviera, Mário Nogueira de; Cipriani Xavier, Raquel (Tradução de Jordan Michel-Muniz) Pages 1-70 -
2022
Title Individuelle (politische) Verantwortung für den Klimawandel; In: Markt, Staat, Gesellschaft. Eine Festschrift für Richard Sturn Type Book Chapter Author Meyer Publisher R. Dujmovits, E. Fehr, C. Gehrke, H.D. Kurz Pages 111-129 -
2022
Title Introduction to Basic Needs: Normative Perspectives Type Journal Article Author Meyer Journal Lessico di Etica Pubblica. 13,1 -
2023
Title Basic Needs versus Central Capabilities: Defining Sufficientarian Thresholds for Intergenerational (Climate) Justice, , Lessico di Etica Pubblica, 1/2022. (pp. 41-75) Type Other Author Petz Pages 41-75 -
2023
Title Broad, subjective, relative: the surprising folk concept of basic needs DOI 10.1007/s11098-023-02080-9 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Philosophical Studies Pages 319-347 Link Publication -
2023
Title How to Do Empirical Political Philosophy: A Case Study of Miller’s Argument for Needs-Based Justice DOI 10.1007/s10670-023-00747-7 Type Journal Article Author Pölzler T Journal Erkenntnis Pages 1-30 Link Publication -
2023
Title Broad, Subjective, Relative: The Surprising Folk Concept of Basic Needs DOI 10.13140/rg.2.2.18711.75682 Type Other Author Pölzler T Link Publication