How the US being the largest global emitter of C02 is affecting everyone el

Check out our the new Visual Arts page!

How the US Being the Largest Global Emitter of CO2 is Affecting Everyone Else

Written by Joey C. · Editor: Jonah C. · Graphic Designer: Alina C.

5 minute read · 12th November 2026, Thursday

The US is currently the largest global emitter in the world of CO2 and many LEDC's are currently suffering from it.

The US has caused $10 trillion worth of damage to the environment since 1990. Through various methods of releasing carbon emissions into our atmosphere over the last 3 and half decades, the US has caused catastrophic damage to our whole world and more specifically mostly LEDC's as they have weaker infrastructure.

Introduction:

We’ve seen recent examples in Vietnam of climate change, when Super Typhoon Yagi occurred that battered Vietnam and other surrounding regions, directly affecting 3.6 million people and causing severe damage to millions of dollars worth of infrasstucture. This flooding is directly caused by the large amounts of C02 released by countries like the US which release some of the most globally. As such, the question must be asked. How long will it take for the US to realise this? (CCPI, 2024)

(Ferrari, 2024)

As mentioned in the introduction, the US is causing major environmental damage all across the world as a result of their major global emissions released annually, with the USA being the world’s biggest contributor to climate change. As mentioned in the introduction, countries like Vietnam have been majorly affected by the US’s large carbon emissions . This is made even more unfair, as Vietnam only contributes 1.1% of global carbon emissions annually, with the country being less economically developed, meaning its infrastructure is weaker and the location gets impacted the most.

(Ritchie, n.d.).

Looking at the current president of the United States’s view on climate change, he is clearly taking a different approach, prioritising the US over the environment through a very nationalist viewpoint, and being very supportive of the drilling of oil throughout the US, which temporarily supports the US economy, but destroys the environment in the long term. Even worse, he has also completely dismissed climate change as a concept, calling it a complete ‘con job,’ most notably saying this in the United Nations General Assembly. (PBS, 2025)

How does this affect DC students?

This affects DC students, as with climate change becoming an ever more prominent global issue, we are challenged, as the next generation, with the task of dealing with it and creating a better future by becoming more sustainable. As young people, we have to decide how we want to approach this global issue to secure a better future for ourselves. Unlike previous generations we can no longer treat climate change as if it is a distant problem as we’re already seeing the affects it’s having on communities globally. We must consider how our actions affect those globally who live in areas vulnerable to severe flooding and heatwaves. As the next generation we need to respond responsibly by acting more sustainably to secure a safer future, for ourselves and future generations.

Conclusion:

So the question remains: when will the US realise the damage they’re doing? The two possibilities are, either they don’t take action until they see the consequences of their decisions firsthand, with a major natural disaster caused by climate change occurring in their country, or the other, is the US changes their course of action switching to a more sustainable future, reducing their impact on climate change. So as the future generation we must now take action to decide which route we want to see taken.

Reference List

Up Next

The Myers-Briggs 16 Personalities Test

Is Generative AI Going to Overtake the Creative Arts?

Dairy is Scary

An Intro to Game Theory

Page updated

Report abuse