#282: Update: Military Spending Reductions To Fight Climate Change
David Roberts, writing at Vox, brings our attention to a coalition of specialists that hopes to quantify greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in real time.
If successful, this effort would provide opposing nations in a military spending reduction pact with a way to know, objectively, whether their opponents were in fact reducing GHG emissions with the savings from their promised military drawdown.
Per my original blog post from late last year, my three step proposal calling for military spending reductions to fight Climate Change:
1. Focused Protests. In addition to aiming for small, local victories, we should harness global protests to address a specific, comprehensive process. For each year in the 2020s, divert first 1%, in 2021, then 2%, etc., of each nation's military spending to fighting Climate Change. So, referring to the first year's 1%, 'One for Climate' could be a handy slogan. Given that 2018 global military spending was $1.8 trillion, this would mean $18 billion the first year, and a total of roughly a trillion by 2030--a start, with much more from private sources as the process gets underway.
2. Initial Leadership. With a focus on individual nation-states making the minimum 1% commitment, diplomacy and leadership are at a premium. European and East Asian countries would be expected to lead the way, initially, and to assist developing nations.
3. The US. Because we account for nearly half of all military spending, the US joining the 'One for Climate' process would likely be the clincher, allowing hope to bloom, and accelerating the process. While this is unlikely to occur before the next US election, the broad authority given the US president on foreign policy makes this diplomacy-based approach possible, given the constraints of the US political system. As for the US Senate, where legislation to implement 'One for Climate' would normally need a steep 60-vote majority (assuming, of course, that Democrats are in charge), senators could adopt a 50+1 majority policy for any legislation based on overwhelming scientific evidence (existing scientific advisory panels could confirm the science on any legislation being considered). This would allow the next president to successfully shepherd One for Climate legislation through Congress.
