Carbon Budget Exhaustion (2026)
| Group | Rate | Budget Exhausted |
|---|
| Richest 0.1% | 800+ kg CO₂/day | January 3, 2026 |
| Richest 1% | 75.1 tonnes/year | January 10, 2026 |
| Fair share budget | 2.1 tonnes/year | — |
| Poorest 50% | 2 kg CO₂/day | Within budget |
Emissions Distribution (2019)
| Group | Population | Share of Emissions | Per Capita |
|---|
| Top 1% | 77 million | 16% | 75 tonnes/year |
| Top 10% | 771 million | 48% | 31 tonnes/year |
| Middle 40% | 3.1 billion | 40% | ~7 tonnes/year |
| Bottom 50% | 3.8 billion | 12% | 1.6 tonnes/year |
The Inequality Multiple
| Measure | Multiple |
|---|
| Consumption-based: top 1% vs bottom 50% | 75x |
| Asset ownership-based: top 1% vs bottom 50% | 680x |
| Top 1% capital-ownership emissions share | 41% of global total |
| Each billionaire's portfolio | 1.9 million tonnes CO₂/year |
| Top 10% share of observed warming since 1990 | Two-thirds |
Who Suffers Most
The poorest 50% are responsible for 10–12% of emissions
but exposed to 74% of income losses.
The Global North is responsible for 92% of excess emissions.
That translates to $44 trillion in damages to developing countries (1990–2050).
The climate adaptation financing gap is 12–14x what’s actually provided.
What 1.5°C Requires
The richest 1% must reduce emissions by 97% by 2030 —
from 75.1 to ~2.1 tonnes per person per year.
If everyone emitted like the richest 0.1%,
the entire annual carbon budget would be gone in less than 3 weeks.
Sources
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