Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#91

Post by birksherty » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 10:10 AM UTC

resonious wrote: post #32

wsc981 wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not having kids would help a lot in reducing future emissions and pollution though. Would reduce consumption. Bill Burr put it quite succinctly: “that’s not a family photo; it’s an environmental disaster and you’ve framed it!” [0] --- [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wq_edHqpdA

The tough part with these arguments is that's it's not "if you didn't have kids", rather, it's "if a very large number of people didn't have kids". If a small group of like-minded people decide to not have kids in the name of the planet, the effect would probably pale in comparison to the masses that don't hear and/or don't care about these climate change messages. I imagine the "real" solution would have to be one t…

> in comparison to the masses that don't hear and/or don't care about these

By that logic anything you do is useless. But personally not having own kid is the single most effective thing anyone can do. People can just adopt instead.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#92

Post by birksherty » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 10:14 AM UTC

chrisweekly wrote: post #20

To those who suggest "don't have kids": if everyone who cares about saving the planet followed your advice, what would the voting population look like a couple decades from now? I say instead, have children and raise them to be the kind of ethical, courageous, well-educated leaders our future so desperately needs.

> what would the voting population look like

Less humans will surely make more effect than any of other things you do. You can just adopt instead and raise them.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#93

Post by birksherty » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 10:22 AM UTC

andrewljohnson wrote: post #9

Ignore the crunchy comments saying don't eat meat, don't have kids, and don't drive. You have no impact as a consumer or influencer. What you can do is: * a) find someone working on climate change, and help write software for them part-time as a volunteer * b) brainstorm an idea for a site/app, and build it yourself (and of course post it to HN) * c) quit your job, join an organization focused on climate change, and…

Not sure why not having kid is such controversial. I guess people just can't be not selfish, they will find any excuse. People will do anything that does not change their lifestyle, basically all of which are useless compared to what is going on in climate crisis.

Not having kid is the most effective thing anyone can do.

You can just adopt instead, raise them to be ethical. It should not be so controversial. You can be a parent without giving birth.

Also bringing a kid without their consent to this dying planet and then make them fix it (which due to their ancestor's screw ups and comfort) looks like a punishment by parents, pretty selfish. These kids already have jobs to perform before even born. I sure don't want my kids to suffer this disaster and without their consent.

Data conclusively indicates real-world climate change is tracking RCP8.5, the IPCC’s “worst case scenario”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fliCxyAwBWU&t=719s

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#94

Post by villmann » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 10:58 AM UTC

wsc981 wrote: post #16

andrewljohnson wrote: post #9

Ignore the crunchy comments saying don't eat meat, don't have kids, and don't drive. You have no impact as a consumer or influencer. What you can do is: * a) find someone working on climate change, and help write software for them part-time as a volunteer * b) brainstorm an idea for a site/app, and build it yourself (and of course post it to HN) * c) quit your job, join an organization focused on climate change, and…

Not having kids would help a lot in reducing future emissions and pollution though. Would reduce consumption. Bill Burr put it quite succinctly: “that’s not a family photo; it’s an environmental disaster and you’ve framed it!” [0] --- [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wq_edHqpdA

People who are consious about climate change are the kind of people who should have kids, and propagate those values. The world will be worse off if filled by mindless drones instead.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#95

Post by quinndexter » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 11:15 AM UTC

jazzyjackson wrote: post #46

chillwaves wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fine, but a cultural shift away from eating meat for 3 meals a day would have a big impact and how does that happen except at an individual level?

> how does that happen except at an individual level I can see changing subsidies around to make meat more expensive as a matter of public policy being more effective at changing individual behavior than trying to convince them on moral grounds.

And I can see making meat a luxury item only attainable by the wealthy having... unintended consequences.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#96

Post by JensRantil » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 12:12 PM UTC

andrewljohnson wrote: post #9

Ignore the crunchy comments saying don't eat meat, don't have kids, and don't drive. You have no impact as a consumer or influencer. What you can do is: * a) find someone working on climate change, and help write software for them part-time as a volunteer * b) brainstorm an idea for a site/app, and build it yourself (and of course post it to HN) * c) quit your job, join an organization focused on climate change, and…

I did just c) - I'm joining https://normative.io as an engineer at the beginning of next year for this particular reason. The company helps other companies decrease carbon emissions by generating sustainability reports.

I'm _very_ excited to be a tiny part in helping humanity solve one of our biggest problems.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#97

Post by Glench » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 12:17 PM UTC

Write your senator and politician first! It’s easy and they actually do count the letters and calls they receive and use those to make decisions.

Next I’d say decarbonize your life! Most people emit everyday carbon from a small number of big things: transport, home heating and cooling, etc. Luckily, all the fossil fuel powered machines that do these things have electric replacements that actually save money in the long run! Electric cars already have the lowest cost of ownership of any car and heat pump space and water heaters are waaay more efficient than burning gas or oil. So replace you car with an electric the next time you need a car, replace your furnace with a heat pump, replace your gas stove with an induction stove, etc. Pretty much everyone in America needs to do this ASSP if we have any chance of hitting 2 degrees and your example would influence those around you.

You can also donate to Rewiring America which is the only organization I’ve found with an actual concrete engineering-based plan to meet climate goals: https://rewiringamerica.org

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#98

Post by Cryptonic » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 12:34 PM UTC

Convince policy makers to drive and guide innovation and policies .

We won't make it with individual contributions of consuming a bit less. Of course it makes sense to do it at some degree.

Go to every climate strike out there. Including 24.09.2021 is the next global climate strike. Make sure to be there and take your family, friends and colleagues with you.

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#99

Post by dpflan » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 1:02 PM UTC

dpflan wrote: post #10

andrewljohnson wrote: post #9

Ignore the crunchy comments saying don't eat meat, don't have kids, and don't drive. You have no impact as a consumer or influencer. What you can do is: * a) find someone working on climate change, and help write software for them part-time as a volunteer * b) brainstorm an idea for a site/app, and build it yourself (and of course post it to HN) * c) quit your job, join an organization focused on climate change, and…

If you’re into AI, there is Climate Change AI which is a “global initiative to catalyze impactful work at the intersection of climate change and machine learning.” - https://www.climatechange.ai/

Re: Ask HN: What can I do to actively fight climate change?

#100

Post by bluedevil2k » Tue, Sep 21, 2021, 2:02 PM UTC

birksherty wrote: post #91

resonious wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The tough part with these arguments is that's it's not "if you didn't have kids", rather, it's "if a very large number of people didn't have kids". If a small group of like-minded people decide to not have kids in the name of the planet, the effect would probably pale in comparison to the masses that don't hear and/or don't care about these climate change messages. I imagine the "real" solution would have to be one t…

> in comparison to the masses that don't hear and/or don't care about these By that logic anything you do is useless. But personally not having own kid is the single most effective thing anyone can do. People can just adopt instead.

This is SUCH a stupid comment, man. Not having a kid will do absolutely NOTHING to change long term climate change. You’re falling for the PR and lies of the big carbon producing industries that make you believe that you, as an individual, have any impact on climate change at all. You don’t. Sorry if that hurts your “I can change the world” attitude.

Adopting a child is totally different than having your own kid(s) and I’m guessing based on your comments that you don’t have a child.