The concentration of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere has risen dramatically since the industrial revolution began in 1750. The increase is due to fossil fuel combustion and deforestation; natural processes, such as plant growth, are able to absorb some of this CO2. However, human emissions are now exceeding the capacity of these natural “sinks” to remove carbon from the atmosphere. This overshoot of atmospheric CO2 is a major reason why we need to urgently reduce our global emissions.
Carbon emissions are the main cause of climate change. They trap heat in the atmosphere, causing it to warm. This is known as the greenhouse effect. The gases also contain pollutants and particulate matter that harm human health. This article focuses on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, but other greenhouse gases, such as methane (CH4), can have similar effects.
The chart above shows the cumulative CO2 emissions of the world’s countries since 1751, with each country’s share visualized using color. The USA has contributed the most to date, twice as much as China. The rapid rise of Asia’s contribution in recent decades is a result of massive improvements in living standards, with increasing life expectancy and education levels.
You can explore the same data by country in our interactive map below. You can even click on a country to see its total contribution over time. Note that we have excluded emissions from international aviation and shipping, because they are difficult to attribute to a single country.