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Wednesday, 22 November 2023 BUSINESS & FINANCE 13
Oxfam Analysis Reveals:
Extravagant Lifestyles and Investments
Outstrip Emissions of 2.1 Million Homes
A startling revelation, research conducted by Oxfam and rations emit a million times more carbon than the average
US researchers, including Beatriz Barros and Richard Wilk, person. The report underscores the environmental injustice,
exposes the disproportionate carbon footprint of twelve of as the world’s poorest communities, least responsible for
the world’s wealthiest billionaires. The exclusive findings climate change, bear the harshest consequences.
shared with The Guardian reveal that the combined green-
house gas emissions from their extravagant lifestyles and The study highlights specific instances, such as the $500
lucrative investments surpass the annual energy emissions million superyacht recently built for Jeff Bezos, which
of 2 million homes. alone emits approximately 7,154 tonnes of CO2 annu-
ally. Superyachts owned by Bezos, Abramovich, and others
Prominent figures such as Jeff Bezos, Roman Abramovich, exceed the carbon footprints of the private jets owned by
Bill Gates, Larry Page, Michael Dell, Elon Musk, and Carlos ten of the twelve billionaires.
Slim are among the tycoons implicated in this environmental Notably, a superyacht on permanent standby generates
reckoning. The analysis, utilizing publicly available data, about 7,000 tonnes of CO2 each year, revealing the stag-
delves into the luxury purchases, including superyachts, gering environmental impact associated with such luxury
private jets, cars, helicopters, and opulent mansions, as well vessels.
as the impact of their financial investments and sharehold-
ings. Astonishingly, these billionaires contribute almost 17 Richard Wilk, one of the researchers, stresses that these
million tonnes of CO2 and equivalent greenhouse gas emis- calculations represent a minimum, acknowledging that the
sions annually, equating to the emissions from 4.6 coal-fired emissions of superyachts are unparalleled due to constant
power plants. maintenance, onboard amenities, and high energy-
consuming luxury items. The study calls attention to the
Oxfam’s inequality policy adviser, Alex Maitland, decries the urgent need for more transparent reporting and account-
“obscene amounts of carbon pollution” generated by billion- ability regarding the environmental impact of billionaires’
aires, emphasizing that their investments through corpo- investments and extravagant lifestyles.
