State Power and Capital in the Climate Crisis: A Theory of Fossil Imperialism

Keywords: climate crisis, capitalism, imperialism
Abstract Type: Virtual Paper Abstract

Abstract

The term imperialism has long been used to highlight and theorize the connections between capital accumulation and the use of state power on its behalf. This nexus is crucial for capitalist expansion, the protection of private property, the implementation of unequal capital-labor relations and the enforcement of market relations (Petras & Veltmeyer, 2014). In this paper, we theorize fossil imperialism as a distinct system of imperial domination: by adding the operator fossil to the operand imperialism, we aim to highlight the key role of states in ensuring a steady supply of fossil energy. Because Fossil Capitalism requires the ceaseless accumulation of capital, this system therefore necessitates a continued expansion of its fossil base: coal, oil, and fossil gas (Malm 2015). Thus, it must ensure and control the flow of cheap fossil energy (Moore & Patel 2018). Our model of fossil imperialism stresses five ways in which imperial states facilitate this process: (1) Colonization; (2) Projection of military power; (3) Suppression of anti-extractivist movements; (4) Economic warfare; (5) Domination of the global (financial and political) institutions that regulate the trade and distribution of fossil fuels.