Rethinking Unilateralism: Personal Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Moral Discourse on Anthropogenic Climate Change

Abstract

Given the overwhelming scale and complexity of climate change, it is unclear whether individuals can make a difference, and if they can be considered morally responsible. This paper raises skepticism about arguments that relegate the importance of individuals’ roles qua individuals in climate mitigation. It highlights reasons to reconsider the importance of reducing personal emissions by exploring the mistakenly narrow framing of such reductions in 'anti-individual' arguments about moral responsibility.