Overall, we get the 50-10 rule: 10 percent of the world’s population (the highest polluters) contribute roughly 50 percent of CO2 emissions, while the 50 percent who pollute the least contribute just over 10 percent.

although GHG emissions per person are higher in high-income countries, relative impacts of climate change are greater in low-income countries

of consumption and the environmental damage it causes.38 The richest 10% of the world’s population are responsible for around 50% of global carbon emissions, while the poorest half of the world’s population are responsible for just 10% of total emissions. Put differently, if the top 10% of earners worldwide reduced their consumption to the level of