15 July 2009

144 Days to Go - Let's Do Some Compassion Math

If you watched the David Suzuki speech on the 145 Days post, you'll have heard some sad statistics.


The world's 50 least developed countries (LDCs) have contributed less than 1 one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, but are reaping over 95 per cent of the impacts.


Here are those numbers are again:

50 LDCs + <1% ghgs =" ">95% of impacts

And here are those countries (in alphabetical order):

  1. Afghanistan
  2. Angola
  3. Bangladesh
  4. Benin
  5. Bhutan
  6. Burkina Faso
  7. Burundi
  8. Cambodia
  9. Cape Verde
  10. Central African Republic
  11. Chad
  12. Comoros
  13. Democratic Republic of the Congo
  14. Djibouti
  15. Equatorial Guinea
  16. Eritrea
  17. Ethiopia
  18. Gambia
  19. Guinea
  20. Guinea-Bissau
  21. Haiti
  22. Kiribati
  23. Lao People's Democratic Republic
  24. Lesotho
  25. Liberia
  26. Madagascar
  27. Malawi
  28. Maldives
  29. Mali
  30. Mauritania
  31. Mozambique
  32. Myanmar
  33. Nepal
  34. Niger
  35. Rwanda
  36. Samoa
  37. Sao Tome and Principe
  38. Senegal
  39. Sierra Leone
  40. Solomon Islands
  41. Somalia
  42. Sudan
  43. Timor-Leste
  44. Togo
  45. Tuvalu
  46. Uganda
  47. United Republic of Tanzania
  48. Vanuatu
  49. Yemen
  50. Zambia

Check this UN webpage for the list of criteria for inclusion. Note the recommendation that the Maldives "graduate" from LDC status — I wonder if the fact that their country is disappearing due to global climate disruption and sea level rise will influence that decision.


Please visit Global Islands Network for information on all the small island nations that are disappearing.


My heart goes out to these countries and these people. Imagine this kind of poverty and lack of development exacerbated by the impacts of global warming. Once again, there but for the grace of the Universe go I.

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I would appreciate hearing your thoughts or questions on this post or anything else you've read here. What is your take on courage and compassion being an important part of the solution to the climate change emergency?