Vanessa Fetter (Vermont), A Global Climate Wealth Tax To Fund a Worldwide, Just Transition:

As income inequality grows worldwide, so too does carbon inequality. As the effects of climate change continue to intensify and affect those that contributed the least, shrinking the wealth gap will reduce inequality, reduce carbon consumption, and raise funds to address climate change. This paper will delve into the possibility of an internationally coordinated climate wealth tax, to fund a just transition globally. A global climate wealth tax will provide the strongest protection against wealthy individuals leaving countries for tax purposes, creating wealth leakage.

From 1990 to 2015, the richest 1% of the world’s population were three times more responsible for the total growth in greenhouse gas emissions compared to the poorest 50%. An internationally coordinated climate wealth tax could be used to curb wealth inequality directly correlated to higher greenhouse gas emissions. A global climate wealth tax would not replace the need for a carbon tax. A global climate wealth tax would simply provide another incentive targeting high-net worth individuals, who bear a greater responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions. This paper will explore the structure and implementation of an internationally coordinated global climate wealth tax, as well as the potential revenue streams resulting from the collection of the tax.