Covid19 and Climate Change: consequences of capitalism?

RMIT Researchers

• Dr Leanne Morrison
• Professor Alan Lowe

Project Description

This project maps out the conceptual links between Covid19, capitalism and climate change, and how accounting has played an inherently dark role in each. First we briefly explore the interrelated histories of capitalism and climate change, and how these histories are conceptually informed by an ontology of distance and separation (Latour, 1993). We explore how this metaphorical separation is operationalised in accounting processes such as the calculation of profit.

Within this calculation, we point towards the practice of externalisation in particular. Externalisation is understood as a cost generated through the activities of an organisation, but which is imposed on external stakeholders, without recompense (Unerman et al., 2018). We use the concept of externalisation to draw some parallels and linkages between capitalism, climate change and Covid19, noting that Covid19 may indeed be the natural outcome of two hundred years of this particular calculative relationship. With this in mind, we complete the circle with a discussion of degrowth and interconnectivity, suggesting some possible post-pandemic pathways out of the multiple current global crises.

Theme

Climate Change

Key Words

Profit; externalisation; externalised costs; degrowth; interconnectivity; separation