Richest 1% Exhausted Their Carbon Budget for 2026 in Just 10 Days, Says Oxfam

To stay within the 1.5C global warming limit, the richest 1% would have to slash their emissions by 97% by 2030, a study found.

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The wealthiest segment of the global population continues to pollute unchecked, a sign that the climate crisis isn’t just a global issue – it is an inequality issue. ⁠

It took the wealthiest 1% only 10 days to exhaust their annual fair share of emissions, Oxfam revealed last week. To limit warming to 1.5C, they would have to slash their emissions by 97% by the decade’s end, it added.

Meanwhile, it took the richest 0.1% only three days to exhaust their carbon budget.

As emissions grow, so do the impacts of the climate crisis – such as more frequent and destructive extreme weather events. According to the charity’s research, some 1.3 million heat-related deaths by the end of the century will be attributable to the emissions the richest 1% generated in just one year.

Low and lower-middle income countries will continue to bear the brunt of a climate crisis driven by decades of overconsumption by the super rich, which is expected to cost these countries some $44 trillion in economic damage by mid-century, Oxfam also said.

An October report by Oxfam revealed that the daily emissions of the richest 0.1% are higher than the yearly emissions of the poorest half. Their emission share has increased by 32% since 1990, while that of the poorest 50% has fallen by 3%. 

Influence and Investments

But the global elite’s lifestyle is not the only driver of emissions.

The October report revealed that the carbon footprint from a single billionaire’s investments – typically in polluting industries like fossil fuels – is 346,000 times greater than that of the average person. In 2024, the emissions linked to the investments of the 308 billionaires totalled 586 million tonnes of CO2 – more than the combined emissions of 118 countries. 

With money comes the power to shape companies’ influence and governments’ agendas. At the most recent UN climate summit, COP30 in Brazil, fossil fuel lobbyists outnumbered every the members of all delegations except that of the host country.

“The immense power and wealth of super-rich individuals and corporations have also allowed them to wield unjust influence over policymaking and water down climate negotiations,” said Oxfam’s Climate Policy Lead Nafkote Dabi.  

Tax the Rich

Oxfam has long called on governments to “make rich polluters pay.” This can be done by increasing taxes on their income and wealth, banning or punitively taxing carbon-intensive luxury items, and taxing fossil fuel companies’ excess profit. Oxfam says a profit tax on all major oil, gas and coal companies would raise up to $400 billion in its first year alone.

“Time and time again, the research shows that governments have a very clear and simple route to drastically slash carbon emissions and tackle inequality: by targeting the richest polluters,” said Dabi. “By cracking down on the gross carbon recklessness of the super-rich, global leaders have an opportunity to put the world back on track for climate targets and unlock net benefits for people and the planet.”