Climate Colonialism: A Candle Burning from Both Ends

What if our narratives of nature and climate change were a kaleidoscope of all of the backgrounds, ethnicities and experiences which make up Wales? 

This is exactly what the researcher Green Soul aimed to set in motion, collaborating with the Welsh Government to produce a report in 2024, focusing on relationships between marginalised communities and nature in Wales. 

One theme which emerged from respondents was the need to see mainstream narratives of Climate Change through the lens of global, systemic racism.  

This article provides a brief overview of the core reasons used to justify the climate crisis as a product of ongoing colonial injustices, and some of the ways we can begin to decolonise our collective minds.

Colonialism, can be defined as the racial domination and control of one people over another. This often manifests as political control , resource extraction, and ideologies of superiority. 

Overdeveloped nations today were built on the backs of exploitation and slavery. But despite acknowledging this historic injustice, the same countries continue to steal land, loot resources and enforce financial pressure in the form of debts. Still today, as I am writing this after Easter, I am conscious that the chocolate I have gifted, many ingredients of the meals we have enjoyed, and even the wooden table my family sat around, originated from other parts of the world, often unfairly.

The subsequent wealth extracted from the global south has been used to develop society towards industrialisation and technological innovation powered by fossil fuels, initiating the climate crisis as a result. 

What makes matters worse, the same financial system has locked itself within capitalism, requiring ever growing overconsumption in order to stay afloat. Unfortunately this can only be achieved with further exploitation.

It’s this self perpetuating cycle of consumption which has resulted in  “North America and Europe [being] responsible for around half of all emissions since the Industrial Revolution”, according to World Inequality Lab. 

To provide a comparison, China’s total emissions contribute 11% of historical emissions. Furthermore, this doesn’t take into account the fact that a large portion of these emissions are generated whilst producing goods which will ultimately be consumed in North America and Europe. Therefore, acknowledging emissions the global minority are indirectly responsible for, increases their contribution even more.

On top of this, the same peoples who have borne the brunt of the damaging process of industrialisation and capitalist systems, are now experiencing the harshest consequences of climate change. 2024 was the first year to exceed 1.5c from pre-industrial global temperatures, and we can see the impacts of this with ever increasing draughts, forest fires and floods. 

Wealthy counties are currently offering up communities across the world as ‘sacrifice zones’; condemned to face the impacts of climate change, so that a few can continue to live a life of luxury.

Therefore, overcoming carbon dependency within countries of the global north isn’t enough. ‘Climate solutions’ will continue to be inherently unjust if we avoid tackling the colonial power structures which caused the climate crisis in the first place.

For example, land grabs and mining projects extract rare earth metals and renewable energy in order to offset the Global Minority’s carbon footprint. Power is entirely placed in the hands of western countries, using money, forcing political authority, and emphasising western knowledge as superior. This is the fundamental reason why justice needs to be a foundational topic of discussion throughout our transition, otherwise colonial mindsets will continue to cause damage.

Therefore, the global majority hold the burden of both the consequences of Western-induced climate change, as well as hosting exploitative mitigation strategies.

These strains on communities are compounding, and much like a candle burning from both ends, people’s capacities to cope are melting away. While donating aid, financial or otherwise, helps provide communities with the capacity to cope with such burdens, this approach perpetuates western-dominating power structures. 

Moreover, recent approaches at governmental panels such as the Conference of the Parties (COP); to invite global majority communities to speak at conferences, is also an illusion of support. Farhana Sultana (2022) argues “it is not just about having a seat at the table […] but determining what the table is, i.e. the terms of the debate or framing of the conversation and having decision making power”. 

Communities which haven’t resorted to the exploitation of nature and other peoples should be at the forefront of shaping what our economies and policies should look like. Therefore, here in Wales, we still have a long way to go before we can proclaim decolonisation.

To conclude, our global climate is a war zone for colonialism, whether it’s through the continuation of frivolously burning fossil fuels, or the destruction of people’s lands for the sake of ‘green solutions’. Racism must be challenged locally through active engagement with silenced voices, such as through the Green Soul report. We must however, also see ourselves as global citizens, with the power to acknowledge historic and contemporary injustices, and actively fight against them.

Here are a couple of suggestions as to how you can support decolonising our collective minds:

1. Diversify media consumption:
   
   Be aware of the voices you hear. This doesn’t have to just be within climate discussions, but in all facets of life. Consider the ways you could diversify the types of media you are exposed to. Take a look at the authors you read and listen to, the content creators you watch, and make a goal to diversify the media you consume beyond that of overdeveloped countries. Furthermore, if you are a student, researcher, teacher or professor, consider the diversity within your citations. Do you include non-western citations into your arguments and discussions?
2.  Introduce discussions through curiosity:

Bringing up diversity, colonialism and justice can be a challenging subject for those on both sides of the discussion. Climate rage is understandably increasing everyday, and we all have the right to express our embodied experience of climate change emotion. On the other hand, we can also achieve productive and constructive conversations through curiously questioning the inclusivity of the events and actions we participate and interact with. If you are interested in a project, or already involved in one, consider the power dynamics and who is involved. Raise the subject in an email, at meetings, or lunch breaks. There may be underlying challenges the group face when addressing these topics, and there could be an opportunity to help. Approaching the subject in a supportive manner can avoid shutting out the receiver.

References:

Chancel, L., 2021. Climate change and the global inequality of carbon emissions 1990-2020. París: World Inequality Lab.

Funes, Y., 2022. Yes, Colonialism Caused Climate Change, IPCC Reports. [Online] Available at: https://atmos.earth/ipcc-report-colonialism-climate-change/ (accessed: 07.05.2025)

Gov.Wales., 2024. Anti-racist Wales evidence report: Green Soul. [Online] Available at: https://www.gov.wales/sites/default/files/pdf-versions/2024/11/3/1730892913/anti-racist-wales-evidence-report-green-soul.pdf (accessed: 07.05.2025)

Kimmel,E., 2017. File:Climate March 0241 (34210342272).jpg. [Online] Available at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Climate_March_0241_(34210342272).jpg (accessed: 07.05.2025)

Poynting, M., et al., 2025. 2024 first year to pass 1.5C global warming limit. [Online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd7575x8yq5o (accessed: 07.05.2025)

Sultana, F., 2022. The unbearable heaviness of climate coloniality. Political Geography, 99, p.102638.