The choice between progress and the planet

This study explores, with a particular focus on the Australian political context, how the ethical impacts of pursuing effective climate change policy have been diluted by the singular focus on economic implications. The paper uses critical discourse analysis to examine examples of political speeches and documents. It gives an historical overview of political problems of pursuing climate policy (Australia has had five prime ministers in six years, all of them whose political incumbency has pivoted around their positions on climate change.) The paper then discusses more generally, why economics has become the dominant narrative and the arguments for considering climate change as a moral or ethical issue, hence the title "the choice between progress or the planet.