Inequality and climate change: Measuring interlinkages to inform equitable climate policy
Rawane Yasser, Muna Shifa, Anda David, Murray Leibbrandt, Vimal Ranchhod, Harald Winkler
ACEIR working paper no. 19, January 2026.
Originally published as an AFD research paper.
The interlinkages between climate change and socioeconomic inequality are increasingly acknowledged, yet analytical frameworks and empirical tools that jointly address these dimensions remain limited.
This paper contributes to these discussions by distilling the key channels through which climate change and inequality mutually reinforce one another and by identifying a set of indicators to measure these linkages and inform policies in different country contexts.
Drawing on the literature, the authors examine these relationships at both the global scale – across countries – and the national scale – within countries, including subnational and socio-economic dimensions. At the global level, they highlight how economic inequalities shape greenhouse gas emissions trajectories, adaptive capacity, and mitigation burdens, while climate change itself entrenches disparities in income and development prospects, particularly for low- and middle-income countries. At the national level, the authors document how inequalities in income, wealth, assets, and access to services influence emissions patterns, exposure to climate risks, and resilience, and how climate shocks exacerbate existing spatial and socio-economic inequalities.
With this evidence on the interlinkages between climate change and inequalities and the distillation of indicators to profile these interlinkages, the aim is to inform key policy issues and choices. The proposed framework informs both equitable international climate cooperation and national policy strategies aimed at structural transformation towards inclusive and climate-resilient pathways. Read more