The theory of justice in a warming climate

Abstract

This article test, whether John Rawls ́ Theory of Justice is still relevant in a warming climate. The starting point is Finland, which is assumed as a useful example, as many social indicators suggest that Finland is close to Rawlsian egalitarian standards of distributive justice. The theory is brought to the globalized world of 21st century, by widening the perspective from the original society level to a global level. It can be argued that economic growth in developed countries benefits people in developing countries, as we can afford to give more development aid. I argue, however, that this has not been large enough to compensate for it's the negative side effects, most notably that of a warming climate. Furthermore, the costs of current carbon-fueled economic growth favouring present generations in the developed countries will mainly be paid by future generations of the poor in developing countries.