The ethics of climate change: a systematic literature review

Climate change has impacted the world as we know it and will continue to do so unless radical steps are taken. These steps involve complex ethical decisions that will need to be made by leaders worldwide. This systematic literature review on the ethics of climate change from 1992 to 2020 reveals three key areas of research: the ethics of who bears the cost of climate change, market solutions, and geoengineering and non-market solutions. Emerging research areas relate to the ethics of population, displacement and resettlement, and leadership. This paper reveals an intrinsic relationship between ethics and climate change that extends beyond a purely economic and emissions-based perspective. An ethical perspective must be utilised to ensure that any amelioration efforts are equitable and consider those at the margins, including those in developing nations.