As we get richer we gain access to these things, and our emissions increase. But that’s not the full story. We see large differences in emissions among rich countries. Culture, transport infrastructure and our choices of energy sources matter a lot. Living standards in Sweden are just as good as they are in the US, if not higher. Yet the average Swede emits just one-quarter of the emissions of the average American, and half as much as the average German. And some middle-income countries – such as China and South Africa – have now overtaken many richer countries across Europe in per capita
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