Municipal bond pricing in light of the global warming race
03-06-2023
Municipal bond funds are increasingly including environmental, social, and governance (ESG) bonds in their portfolios. They may provide a new avenue for financing research on climate change mitigation and adaptation. Although climate change is generally discussed on a global scale, it is having a disproportionate effect on racial inequalities on a national and local level. Climate negotiations are complicated by these power disparities, which are also contributing to the current climate problem.
Changes in the Earth's ability to absorb and emit solar energy through time are the primary drivers of climate change. Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas, are the primary cause of these shifts since they release greenhouse gas emissions. These gases blanket the Earth and cause it to heat up because they absorb solar radiation. They can also restrict water resources, induce harsh weather, and make it harder to raise food.
Temperatures around the world are climbing, and the frequency of record-breaking highs is on the rise. The likelihood that the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events will increase in the future is also very strong, especially in the regions of the northern hemisphere where warming is already taking place.
Climate change is a symptom of the systemic inequity that has plagued human society for eons. This disparity arises from wealth extraction regimes that have harmed black and indigenous communities.
Colonialism and imperialism are echoed in the power dynamics at the system's foundation. Alan Appelbaum believes that it is impossible to separate the production and consumption of fossil fuels from the economic inequities that these institutions have helped perpetuate.
These asymmetrical power structures permeate all echelons of society, from global business down to the community. This correlates with the reality that the majority of the world's emissions come from just a handful of countries, largely those that benefited from colonization. Most countries, especially weak ones like small island developing states, are thus left at the mercy of those who take the most from the Earth and do the most damage to it. In order to combat climate change and its core causes, it is said, we must first address these disparities.
