Climate Inaction as Discrimination Against Young People

As many young people are now making clear, they are being subjected to extraordinary risks of harms because of government inaction on climate change. In a previous paper, I argued that those who accept climate science have an obligation to join forces with others in pressing for adequate policies. Given what is at stake, it is quite wrong for individuals go about their everyday lives while ignoring the problem. This is not a vague obligation to future generations, nor is it an obligation that is opaque to common-sense morality. This paper is a commentary on Greta Thunberg’s brief but powerful speeches. I start with an exploration of the climate crisis as she depicts it. Next, I interpret her as arguing that complacency in the face of the risks that we are imposing on younger people is a form of systemic or structural discrimination comparable to racism and sexism. Our inaction on climate change does not treat young lives as if they mattered and equally. I conclude with some reflections on her explanation of why we have so far failed to act in ways that take climate change seriously.