Over the last several years climate change has become increasingly part of mainstream conversations. Yet equity continues to be strikingly absent from the popular discourse on the subject. Instead, climate change has been framed as a global environmental problem whose impacts affect all of us the same.

The critical questions are these: who is contributing to the problem, who is most affected by the problem, and who will pay to solve the problems climate change causes?

As we debate how to address climate change, we must reframe our thinking. Climate change is about equity. It will have profound impacts on the environment, public health, and the physical form of our communities, as well as many other aspects of our social, economic, and environmental well-being.

To contribute to a deeper understanding of the issues surrounding climate change within the social equity movement, PolicyLink commissioned, Understanding Climate Change: An Equitable Framework. We hope that this paper will inspire leaders to learn not only about climate change but to also bring their knowledge, experience, and alliances to the climate change debates and to help develop equitable solutions.

Share your innovative solutions that promote equity and that move us toward a climate-friendly society.

Tags: climate change, equity

This entry was posted on Monday, September 22nd, 2008 at 5:52 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.