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Climate Change

Punching above our weight

June 19, 2025 by James J. Morrison W.G. Dupree Leave a Comment

Climate change has escalated as the global average temperature has risen above the 1.5°C limit we hoped to avoid. China is responsible for 27% of global carbon dioxide emissions, according to the BBC. China is often unfairly blamed for these emissions, despite accounting for 35% of global industrial production, according to the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). Still, before we point fingers at other countries, perhaps we in Australia ought to properly evaluate our own carbon footprint, especially that which results from trade, including outsourcing our manufacturing to China and its consequential pollution.

China should not bear ultimate responsibility for the creation of non-recoverable waste resulting from what it manufactures on our behalf, due to following flawed economic principles. That ought to be allocated as Australia’s pollution. According to MIT, over 22% of China’s carbon dioxide emissions stem from net exports produced there for global consumption.  These emissions are classified as “trade-embodied” because China’s exports of goods and services generate the waste on behalf of the global community.

Neoclassical economics and neoliberalism in the late 19th and 20th centuries have promoted trade liberalisation and free market economies. Unsurprisingly, in 2014, Stamford University rehashed a Hayek-inspired economic myth. It claims that advanced post-industrial economies should consider outsourcing or reorganising their secondary and primary sectors, and focusing on their tertiary sector. It was based on a three-sector economic model: primary (agricultural, mining), secondary (manufacturing), and tertiary (services). One advances from the first to the third sector, leaving each level behind.

However, increasing one trophic level of an economy at the expense of others introduces risks. If a country primarily develops its primary sector, it becomes more sensitive to changes in commodity prices, agricultural weather, and environmental deterioration. Argentina has exhibited such weaknesses. Australia has retained only a remnant of its secondary trophic levels (Manufacturing), eliminating market complexity. As Aaron Patrick in the AFR said, “Australia sells the world almost nothing, relative to total exports, that requires a degree to make.”

The Pandemic’s supply chain issues, which caused inflation due to limited manufacturing in Australia, have forced subsequent administrations to evaluate the implications of not supporting a domestic manufacturing industry. In an August 2023 speech, Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic reflected this: “Australia has the highest dependency on manufactured imports and the lowest level of manufacturing self-sufficiency of any OECD country.”

A robust primary sector can provide the raw materials required for a vital secondary industry. This, in turn, can deliver the infrastructure and technologies essential for a thriving tertiary sector, that feeds back to support the primary and secondary sectors. Internally, we now lack the necessary manufacturing infrastructure capabilities, as do many Western countries. However, no modern economy will survive without some manner of primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.

Consequently, post-industrial economic narratives have facilitated the extensive outsourcing of secondary-level manufacturing, leading to a significant decline in domestic manufacturing capabilities. The fact that 35% of global manufacturing is outsourced to China is sustaining these nations’ operational economies.

According to Climate Analytics, Australia ranks 11th in worldwide per capita carbon emissions, whereas China ranks 38th, according to Visual Capitalist. Australia accounts for 4.5% of the world’s fossil-fuel carbon dioxide emissions, excluding imports, with 80% of this total coming from fossil fuels. Woodside’s North-West Shelf operations will continue for 40 years as a consequence of the Albanese government approval. This should considerably increase the amount of waste we produce. China’s pollution-related imports should be credited to other economies. Waste by US corporations producing in China to take advantage of reduced costs and better logistics should be blamed on the US. This is often overlooked and is particularly detrimental to Australia.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade reports that China’s manufactured goods exports to Australia rose 39% to $106 billion from 2019-20 to 2022-23. Australia’s largest resource and energy market is China, and related waste is a consequence of Australian consumption.

China supplied £63.6 billion to the UK in 2024, according to the BBC. Chinese goods accounted for 13.3% of UK imports, making China the top import partner. China is Australia’s greatest import and export partner. In 2024, Australia’s exports totaled $196 billion, and its imports reached $115.6 billion, according to the ABS.

When we ignore neoliberal capitalism and capital mobility that facilitates outsourcing, we fail to acknowledge their influence, and we solely attribute carbon pollution to China. China is the outsourcer for much of the secondary trophic level of several Western economies. Global supply chains and international trade make it challenging to determine which countries are the primary sources of emissions for China’s industry. We can chart the intermediary cause, not the final accountability. The graph from ‘Our World in Data’ shows ‘production-based’ emissions per capita. It does not account for imported contributions or land use.

Selected Economies' per capita pollution figures from 1750 to 2023
Figure 1. Selected Economies’ per capita pollution figures from 1750 to 2023

Since the Global Financial Crisis, Australia has competed with the US for the highest per capita polluter in the world (excluding “trade-embodied” pollution and land use), only falling behind in 2014 and 2022. The first was a consequence of PM, Tony Abbott reversing PM, Julia Gillard’s carbon pricing policy. The second is due to the real-world lag created by pandemic lockdowns. While we fell behind in per-capita pollution in 2022, we rebounded in 2023.

One can only imagine that if we included land use (we’ve 5% of the world’s land mass) and accounted for imported “trade-embodied” pollution ($115.6 billion in imports from China in 2024), we would hold a more convincing lead position among the world’s greatest per capita polluters. Woodside’s additional 40 years of fossil fuel extraction and exporting from the North-West Shelf are surely going to give us a commanding lead for decades to come.

Better measurements are needed for effective mitigation initiatives. My father (the perpetual accountant) often said to me, “What gets measured, gets managed!” We should include our imported carbon pollution as well as our domestic and exported use. Relevant to Australians because Western economies’ post-industrial economic mantra prefers to dismiss individual contributions and ignore collective responsibility. That failure contributes to more frequent floods, droughts, and massive fires in our country. It provides excuses to minimise our commitment to reducing consumption and addressing the need to switch to batteries and renewables as anything less than an emergency.  That choice will result in loss of life, property damage, and economic penalty. We must accept responsibility for driving global temperature above 1.5 degrees, not pass the buck to a country that is manufacturing on our behalf.

References

  • Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2024, April 30). International Trade: Supplementary Information, Calendar Year, 2019 | Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved from www.abs.gov.au website: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/economy/international-trade/international-trade-supplementary-information-calendar-year/latest-release
  • Baldwin, R. (2024, January 17). China Is the World’s Sole Manufacturing superpower: a Line Sketch of the Rise. Retrieved from CEPR website: https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/china-worlds-sole-manufacturing-superpower-line-sketch-rise
  • BBC. (2021, May 7). Report: China Emissions Exceed All Developed Nations Combined. BBC News. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57018837
  • BBC. (2024, July 4). China as a regional and world power – China’s international influence – Higher Modern Studies Revision. Retrieved from BBC Bitesize website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zvwmy9q/revision/2
  • Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. (2021). Trade statistical pivot tables. Retrieved from Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website: https://www.dfat.gov.au/trade/trade-and-investment-data-information-and-publications/trade-statistics/trade-statistical-pivot-tables
  • Grant, H., & Hare, B. (2024, August 11). Australia’s global fossil fuel carbon footprint. Retrieved from Climate Analytics website: https://climateanalytics.org/publications/australias-global-fossil-fuel-carbon-footprint
  • Haly, J. (2022, March 13). Climate change has created two very typical states of environmental disasters in the Australian landscape – The AIM Network. Retrieved from The AIM Network website: https://theaimn.com/climate-change-has-created-two-very-typical-states-of-environmental-disasters-in-the-australian-landscape/
  • Husic, E. (2023, August 23). A Future Made in Australia: Deepening Australia’s Economic Complexity | Ministers for the Department of Industry, Science and Resources. Retrieved from Ministers for the Department of Industry, Science and Resources website: https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/husic/speeches/future-made-australia-deepening-australias-economic-complexity
  • Nicholas, J., & Evershed, N. (2025, June 18). Revealed: the astonishing greenhouse gas emissions that will result from the North West Shelf project. Retrieved from the Guardian website: https://www.theguardian.com/news/ng-interactive/2025/jun/19/north-west-shelf-project-greenhouse-gas-emissions-burrup-peninsula-western-australia
  • Our World in Data. (2024). Per capita CO2 emissions. Retrieved from Our World in Data website: https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/co-emissions-per-capita?country=USA~GBR~OWID_EU27~CHN~ZAF~CAN~AUS
  • Patrick, A. (2019, October 7). Australia is rich, dumb and getting dumber. Retrieved from Australian Financial Review website: https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/australia-is-rich-dumb-and-getting-dumber-20191007-p52y8i
  • Rao, P. (2025, June 5). Ranked: Top Countries by Annual Electricity Production (1985–2024). Retrieved from Visual Capitalist website: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-top-countries-by-annual-electricity-production-1985-2024/
  • Readfearn, G. (2021, May 31). Covid sent Australia’s carbon emissions plummeting in 2020 to lowest levels in 30 years. Retrieved from the Guardian website: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/31/covid-sent-australias-carbon-emissions-plummeting-in-2020-to-lowest-levels-in-30-years
  • Roberts, A. G. (2014, March 6). Calculating China’s carbon emissions from trade. Retrieved from MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology website: https://news.mit.edu/2014/calculating-chinas-carbon-emissions-from-trade
  • Roberts, E. (2014, November 1). The Economics Behind Offshoring. Retrieved from cs.stanford.edu website: https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/cs181/projects/2003-04/offshoring/history.html
  • Taylor, A. (2025, April). Why U.S. Manufacturers Can’t Quit China Despite Challenges. Retrieved from Cleverence.com website: https://www.cleverence.com/articles/business-blogs/why-u.s.-manufacturers-cant-quit-china-despite-challenges/
  • The Australia Institute. (2020, August 5). Key Gillard-Era Reform Carbon Price Would Have Saved 72 Million Tonnes of Emissions. Retrieved from The Australia Institute website: https://australiainstitute.org.au/post/key-gillard-era-reform-carbon-price-would-have-saved-72-million-tonnes-of-emissions/
  • Weinreich, L. (2024, October 30). Historical Responsibility for the Climate Crisis: The Roots of the Unfair Imbalance | Climate Change Performance Index. Retrieved from Climate Change Performance Index | The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) is a scoring system designed to enhance transparency in international climate politics. website: https://ccpi.org/historical-responsibility-for-the-climate-crisis-the-roots-of-the-unfair-imbalance/

Filed Under: Climate Change

Pass the Baton

October 13, 2019 by James J. Morrison W.G. Dupree Leave a Comment

Children are striking in the streets and demanding an effective response to climate change, while many adults sit on their hands. It is a sharp illustration of intergenerational conflict, and Greta Thunberg has become a lightning rod for that conflict.

Social media post collage
Social media post collage

Social media is awash with objections by conservative commentators. The abrupt and defiant language of children protesting at Climate Strike events confronts them. The disparagement of Greta Thunberg in the media has reached fever pitch in some conservative circles. The conservatives appear to have abandoned their allegiance to “free speech” principles, again.

Greta Grief

Hypocrisy in action
Hypocrisy in action

Now it is everything from “crisis actor”, to whom she associates with, to she’s a “spoilt brat“. The later expressed by Jeremy Clarkson, who in turn was swiftly rebuked by his daughter. Other women such as Miranda Divine accused unknown agents, or even Greta’s parents of child abuse and a school headmaster described her as a ‘little girl’ with ‘mental problems‘. This from people who are responsible for our children’s education! You would hope that an educator would minimally understand how Autism works. In fact, despite the stereotyping by the less well educated (which appears to include old white school headmasters), being on the Autism spectrum can provide one with a superior capacity to focus. As the health site “Betterhelp” reports, “For example, people with Asperger’s don’t have trouble with verbal communication. In fact, many have been gifted with extraordinary verbal skills, some do well in school, and many have above-average IQs.”

Imagine how she will talk at 17?
Imagine how she will talk at 17?
Climate Denial is a loud minority.
Climate Denial is a loud minority.

Mind you, Greta had demonstrated quite the capacity to defend herself, protesting that, “They come up with every thinkable lie and conspiracy theory.” It’s not like the generational divide hasn’t been a feature of every previous protest and societal struggle, but with the advent of social media, the conservative minority voice has been amplified out of all proportion to their numbers.

The millions of dollars dedicated to Climate Denial funding
The millions of dollars dedicated to Climate Denial funding

Interestingly on that subject, rarely does the subject of the “science” emerge in the conservatives criticism. When it does, it goes beyond parroting debunked right-wing dogma, as it has revealed the enmeshed relationship between the conservative press, mining barons and political parties. These self-interested groups will stop at nothing to protect their vested interests and are quite literally prepared to sacrifice children and their future.

Yet Greta is triggering the troglodytes and eliciting bullying from a notably dominantly loud demographic in our society – Conservative and Privileged Old White Misogynists.

CAPOWM

The rage of Conservative and Privileged Old White Misogynist (CAPOWM) men is leading the charge. Miranda Divine and Daisy Cousens would demonstrate that it is not an exclusively male opposition. #notall[are]men! 😎 Irrespective, the role of women in outrage over Greta, is dwarfed by the sheer numbers of male counterparts.

Greta thanking OPEC
Greta thanking OPEC

CAPOWM men feel very affected and threatened by a 16-year-old girl in plaits in a way they do not feel affected by about thousands of scientists and adult climate activists. Despite adults protesting, the idea of children conducting a school strike is seen as an existential threat that invokes a moral panic previously unseen. This “existential threat” is breaching some fundamental principle these CAPOWM men hold to be sacrosanct.

  1. These men hold that Elder men are authoritative and demand respect for their “masculine role” and Greta is challenging the status quo and daring to raise her voice to confront her elders on their failures to attend to these climate issues.
  2. These men hold that woman and children should be subordinate, and Greta is challenging their authority and refuses to back down to them.
  3. These men maintain that they have the right to power and authority, and Greta is building a groundswell of popular power to rise and challenge their “throne of swords”.
  4. These men have always been able to blackmail, bully and bribe, but she is so bold and so young that they can find no means of leverage and find themselves in foreign territory. Perhaps not dissimilar to the British response when they faced off Joan of Arc.
  5. The attitudes of your children's coaches?
    The attitudes of your children’s coaches?

    These men realise they cannot reduce this young woman to being a sexualised compliant tool whom they can manipulate to disparage or compromise. Although Tommaso Casalin, an Italian youth football coach, thought otherwise and was justly sanctioned.

  6. These men fear the loss of their wealth, power or privilege or that they will be asked to share any part of it!
  7. These men realise it is inherently wrong to attack a child and are confronted by the power of her honesty. They know they lack the moral high ground and hate being out manoeuvered.

Finally, my eighth reason and one – which when I read online – I initially thought was satire. I searched in vain through the article page for the satire disclaimer. It wasn’t satire! I have seen it replicated a few times now. I baulked at adding this because – while acknowledging toxic masculinity – I inaccurately assumed, this was a minority of chest-thumping men who felt afflicted by this issue.

  1. The critical evaluation of Misogyny
    The critical evaluation of Misogyny

    These men’s toxic masculinity has such a firm grip on their psyche; they feel that if they engage in eco-friendly behaviour, they’re worried it might undermine their masculinity. In short, being seen as “green”, is perceived as “too girly”. WTF!

As a personal interjection, I find it quite hard to wrap my head around the last one. Since I thought it was satire initially, I can only reference Mark Humphries or The Chaser’s real satire by way of providing these men with clarity.

Decent Men!

Orderly protest procession in Kyoto
Orderly protest procession in Kyoto

Decent older men, don’t behave like this!  And I want to finish this article with an inspiration I took from the Student Climate Strike in Kyoto, Japan which our family attended on the 20th of September 2019. My son has not missed any of the School Climate strikes in Australia, but we were in Japan when this one occurred. My son is no “Greta”, even if he understands the crisis of anthropogenic climate change. He is a self-effacing lad not prone to outbursts of radical self-expression or shouting slogans in people’s faces, although I have heard him joining in the chants at protests of his own volition. Although, only when he didn’t notice his proud father looking on. I spoke of his attendance at the first strike in this embedded article.

Last efforts to carry the torch for a generation
Last efforts to carry the torch for a generation
Casual police presence and peaceful protest
Casual police presence and peaceful protest

It was witnessing the “passing of the baton” from one generation to the next, in the Japanese march that caught my attention, amidst all the photographs and recordings I made. The protest started with some speeches at Maruyama Park (an urban park known for its cherry blossoms). Protestors formed an orderly procession under the constructive direction of police officers who at intervals reminded people to drink water to fend off any dehydration. Compared to the harsher attitudes of Australian police over climate protests invoked by Government lies, the courtesy and concern of the escorting police existed as a sharp contrast. The chants expressed by the protestors alternated between English and Japanese.

Carrying on the baton where the old cannot go.
Carrying on the baton where the old cannot go.

Amongst the protestors was an old man in a wheelchair, holding a sign in his lap that read, “No peace without Global Justice”. As the parade progressed down the street, I noted he was missing. The young lady (and accompanying gentleman) who had been pushing his wheelchair was holding the sign. After not finding him in the crowd, I approached them and interviewed them, as to where he had gone. As an older man, he wanted to participate for as long as he could in the student’s strike but had a medical appointment pending. He passed his sign back to the younger lady and left, in effect passing the baton back to youth to carry the cause on. She carried his sign until the end of the march.

Could we perhaps refrain from being foolish misogynist old white men who keep disparaging our youth? Could we be less threatened, by a forthright young girl demanding we pull our proverbial socks up, and take a lesson from a wiser old Japanese man? There comes a time in an older man’s life when whatever effort we have made to better our world for our children, is beyond us. We pass on the baton to them in the hope they will build a better world from the mistakes we have made. For that task, the only thing worthy of an honourable man, is to pass on whatever encouragement, guidance and blessings he can.

Climate Protest by permaculture
Climate Protest by permaculture
CAPOWM men trolling the internet
CAPOWM men trolling the internet
Social propaganda or cognitively dissonant
Social propaganda or cognitively dissonant

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Filed Under: Climate Change, Politicians Tagged With: climate Change, conservative, Greta, Misogynists, White Men

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