Dec 31, 2023 02:11 PM
Your eco-friendly lifestyle is a big lie
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/eco-friendly-myth
EXCERPT: . . . In 2021 the polling firm Ipsos asked 21,000 people in 30 countries to choose from a list of nine actions which ones they thought would most reduce greenhouse gas emissions for individuals living in a richer country.
Most people picked recycling, followed by buying renewable energy, switching to an electric/hybrid car, and opting for low-energy light bulbs. When these actions were ranked by their actual impact on emissions, recycling was third-from-bottom and low-energy light bulbs were last. None of the top-three options selected by people appeared in the “real” top three when ranked by greenhouse gas reductions, which were having one fewer child, not having a car, and avoiding one long-distance flight.
This point isn’t that people are dumb; it’s that the most impactful options don’t always intuitively feel that way to us. The survey also asked people what they thought about the climate impact of different kinds of diets. Respondents were asked which diet had lower greenhouse gas emissions: a vegetarian diet with some imported products, or a locally produced diet that includes meat and dairy. Some 57 percent of people thought the locally produced diet had the lowest impact, with just 20 percent choosing the vegetarian diet and 23 percent opting for “I don’t know.”
As with the other options, the vibes here were way off. It might feel environmentally friendly to walk to your local farmer’s market and pick up a cut of grass-fed beef and a bottle of locally sourced milk, but beef and dairy have two of the highest carbon footprints of any food. What you eat is generally much, much more important than where you source it from.
The data scientist and author Hannah Ritchie expands on these examples in her upcoming book, Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Future. Everything comes with a greenhouse gas footprint: watching Netflix, charging our phones, having a cup of tea. It’s no wonder that we stress out about all the decisions we have to make.
“Tackling climate change feels like a massive sacrifice that has taken over our lives. That would be okay if all of these actions were really making a difference, but they’re not. It’s misplaced effort and stress, sometimes even at the cost of the few actions that really will matter,” Ritchie writes.
The problem is compounded when the most impactful things you can do don’t feel all that “natural.” (MORE - missing details)
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/eco-friendly-myth
EXCERPT: . . . In 2021 the polling firm Ipsos asked 21,000 people in 30 countries to choose from a list of nine actions which ones they thought would most reduce greenhouse gas emissions for individuals living in a richer country.
Most people picked recycling, followed by buying renewable energy, switching to an electric/hybrid car, and opting for low-energy light bulbs. When these actions were ranked by their actual impact on emissions, recycling was third-from-bottom and low-energy light bulbs were last. None of the top-three options selected by people appeared in the “real” top three when ranked by greenhouse gas reductions, which were having one fewer child, not having a car, and avoiding one long-distance flight.
This point isn’t that people are dumb; it’s that the most impactful options don’t always intuitively feel that way to us. The survey also asked people what they thought about the climate impact of different kinds of diets. Respondents were asked which diet had lower greenhouse gas emissions: a vegetarian diet with some imported products, or a locally produced diet that includes meat and dairy. Some 57 percent of people thought the locally produced diet had the lowest impact, with just 20 percent choosing the vegetarian diet and 23 percent opting for “I don’t know.”
As with the other options, the vibes here were way off. It might feel environmentally friendly to walk to your local farmer’s market and pick up a cut of grass-fed beef and a bottle of locally sourced milk, but beef and dairy have two of the highest carbon footprints of any food. What you eat is generally much, much more important than where you source it from.
The data scientist and author Hannah Ritchie expands on these examples in her upcoming book, Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Future. Everything comes with a greenhouse gas footprint: watching Netflix, charging our phones, having a cup of tea. It’s no wonder that we stress out about all the decisions we have to make.
“Tackling climate change feels like a massive sacrifice that has taken over our lives. That would be okay if all of these actions were really making a difference, but they’re not. It’s misplaced effort and stress, sometimes even at the cost of the few actions that really will matter,” Ritchie writes.
The problem is compounded when the most impactful things you can do don’t feel all that “natural.” (MORE - missing details)