Summary of Capitalism Is Destroying Us - The New Climate Report

00:00:00 - 00:20:00

The new climate report suggests that capitalism is destroying the planet, and that a new, more sustainable way of living is possible. It recommends that the French government should make changes to address this issue.

• 00:00:00 The video reports on a new report by the UN which finds that humanity is facing a global collapse due to climate change. The report recommends that we take immediate action to prevent this from happening.
• 00:05:00 The video discusses the idea of "green growth," which is the idea that capitalism can be transitioned to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly without sacrificing economic growth. The video points out that there is empirical evidence that this is not possible, and that even in the best case scenario green growth does not work. The video also discusses the issue of sustainability and growth, and how current growth projections are not feasible.
• 00:10:00 The capitalist system is destroying us, and the oil and gas industry is responsible for a large part of this destruction. If we want to prevent 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius of global warming, we need to transition away from fossil fuels.
• 00:15:00 The video discusses how, in order to combat climate change, a new economic model is needed that is democratic and takes power away from the unaccountable few. The experiment conducted by Harvard and Yale researchers found that, on average, a full 68 of individuals choose to use their share sustainably, sacrificing possible profits in order to preserve future generations. The majority of people behave exactly the opposite of how economic theory predicts, behaving selfishly in order to exploit resources. However, when people are put in a democratic conversation, most prioritize sustainability over profits, knowing that if they succeed, their proposals will be submitted to a national referendum and, if successful, become actual law. This demonstrates the power of democracy to combat climate change, as when we're not broken up into little profit maximizing machines, we make decisions that truly are better for everyone.
• 00:20:00 The new climate report suggests that capitalism is destroying the planet, and that a new, more sustainable way of living is possible. It suggests that the French government should make changes to address this issue.