"[W]hile climate change . . . has become humanity's problem, it was not caused by humanity. It came about because of the consequences of a particular world view. For three centuries, we have consumed the ancient sunlight of the planet. Our economic models are projections and arrows when they should be circles. To define perpetual growth on a finite planet as the sole measure of economic well-being is to engage in a form of slow collective suicide. To deny or exclude from the calculus of governance and economy the costs of violating the biological support systems of life is the logic of delusion" (158).
Davis, Wade. "If We Build It, They Will Come: Industrial Folly and the Fate of Northwest British Columbia." BC Studies, no. 197, Spring 2018, pp. 145-162.
"It was often said . . . that climate change was caused by increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases. Scientists understood that those greenhouse gases were accumulating because of the activities of human beings—deforestation and fossil fuel combustion—yet they rarely said that the cause was people, and their patterns of conspicuous consumption" (15-16).
Oreskes, Naomi, and Erik M. Conway. The Collapse of Western Civilization: A View from the Future. Columbia UP, 2014.
"The climate crisis is closely linked to excessive consumption of the wealthy lifestyle. The most affluent countries are mainly responsible for the historical GHG emissions and generally have the greatest per capita emissions" (8).
Ripple, William J., et al. "World Scientists' Warning of a Climate Emergency." BioScience, vol. 70, no. 1, Jan. 2020, pp. 8-12.
"In 2016, Canadians required 7.7 global hectares per person to meet their needs, the fourth highest ecological footprint in the world. If everyone on Earth lived like an average Canadian it would take 4.8 Earths to meet the demand" (2).
Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals Report: Goal 12, Responsible Consumption and Production. Statistics Canada, 2020.
"[B]etween 2009 and 2013, tourism's global carbon footprint has increased from 3.9 to 4.5 GtCO2e, four times more than previously estimated, accounting for about 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Transport, shopping and food are significant contributors. The majority of this footprint is exerted by and in high-income countries. The rapid increase in tourism demand is effectively outstripping the decarbonization of tourism-related technology. We project that, due to its high carbon intensity and continuing growth, tourism will constitute a growing part of the world's greenhouse gas emissions" (522).
Lenzen, Manfred, et al. "The Carbon Footprint of Global Tourism." Nature Climate Change, vol. 8, 2018, pp. 522-528.