Theory of Knowledge - Course Companion for Students Marija Uzunova Dang Arvin Singh Uzunov Dang

the human sciences we often need to
Within
assumptions before attempting a cost-
make
type analysis which, as outlined in
benefit
of this chapter, and IV.3 of Chapter 7, is
III.4
with knowledge issues. Let’s revisit
fraught
topic of climate change we briefly touch on
the
Chapter 7, IV.3. Recall that there was, and
in
2020 continues to be, disagreement about
into
social cost of carbon per tonne. In 2015 the
the
government came up with a number of
US
worth of economic damages but, shortly
$37
the Stanford scientists argued it
afterwards,
$220. A more recent study in Nature Climate
was
put forward a global social cost of
Change
of $417 per tonne, with widely different
carbon
for different countries (Rickeetal2018).
costs
ranges reflect difficulties in modelling
These
quantifying climate change, and the impact
and
assumptions made by different groups of
of
and stakeholders. Clearly this does
scientists
mean we abandon efforts to quantify the
not
of reduction needed; the task of experts
scale
to negotiate a consensus and arrive at a
is
number.
it is empirically-based, the carbon pricing
As
is more tangible than the philosophical
task
ethical questions and knowledge claims
and
in the climate justice debate. For
embedded
to occur in the race to respond to
progress
climate crisis, nations around the world
the
to work together, and that requires some
need
agreement about ethical issues relating
minimum
responsibility and fairness. And fairness is
to
deeply complicated concept: the 2018 article
a
Ricke et al finds that India, for instance,
by
only 6% of emissions but will bear
contributes
20% of the global economic burden of
over
change. What forms of knowledge will be
climate
to accomplish such an unprecedented
necessary
Are our modes of knowledge production
task?
dissemination appropriate for navigating
and
urgent challenges?
these
IV. Ethics
IV. Ethics
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