When ranking different actions one can take to limit pollution I also like to include actions which has a net-positive effects. There are so many small things which might not be the cheapest or cultural popular but they do directly help the environment.
What can I do about climate change?
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Re: What can I do about climate change?
#72i selfishly don't want to take the necessary individual action where my personal cost-benefit analysis comes out negative. for example, i could become a vegan. if i did so, the net benefit to humanity would be positive. but i don't want to, as i'd have to privately pay the cost (no more delicious chicken) while the benefits (in terms of reduced global cumulative greenhouse gas emissions) are spread across the billion…
There is a simple answer, really, but you won't like it.
"i'm very willing to trade you something of value in return for you making lifestyle changes that don't locally benefit you"
If it's true, then you can make the next small step. For example, for every vegan you have as a friend you can decide to eat less meat. Or for every friend without a car, you can take a bus once in a while. And so on.
That would be a valuable gift to these people, who decided to selflessly take the first step.
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#73Earlier quoted context omitted.
Got any scientific studies to back up that going Vegan is better for the environment?
I think this would be pretty difficult to study since there isn't "one" vegan diet. It differs radically depending on where someone is and what they choose to eat and the complexity of food distribution. On the surface removing meat, diary and eggs from your diet is definitely better for the environment and you can easily find scientific studies to back this up. I find the problems start to arise when you take into a…
Exactly - which is why I take offence to people insisting it's a panacea. For some people in some regions it may very well be, but it's not for all, and trying to sell it that way is a little disingenuous.
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#74This article's quality is higher than many others on the same topic and that's a pleasant surprise. That being said, I can't help being reminded about German language lessons I had ~10 years ago where the teacher was preaching that we must all ditch electric kettles for the sake of the planet. I asked her how is this going to help -- even if 100_00 people do it today -- if corporations are happy to let toxic waste se…
As the article mentions, individuals can do something about corporate pollution: - Buy less stuff. Corporations produce waste because we buy their stuff . Get the stuff you still buy from more environmentally-friendly companies, if possible. - Political action. Corporations need to be regulated and that can only happen through political action. Lobbies may have a lot of power, but in the end, it's the citizens who vo…
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Re: What can I do about climate change?
#75A concrete step we have taken with my girlfriend over the past few months is buying second-hand items. It's crazy how much you save, and to know you have not contributed to creating more stuff.
There is an awesome campaign in France right now, encouraging this kind of behaviour : https://riendeneuf.org
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#76Science is never settled, already there they start the misinformation which is being used so often these days.
These kind of articles are so misguided yet people are so hysterical they actually think the individual can do things.
There is nothing individuals can do that would actually help besides creating solutions to the ever changing consequences of the world we live in. Even if we by some magical event could stop all co2 emissions the climate would still change we would still need to move or fortify against changing sealevels for example.
But right now everyone is coming up with all sorts of irrational solutions to a problem that havent been properly defined and even if it was going to be as catastrophic as some have built themselves up to believe, flying less is going to have no useful effect.
Only way out of this is through the very technology that have created the cars, products etc. to begin with. The genie is out of the bottle and cant be let back in again unfortunately.
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#77Earlier quoted context omitted.
Got any scientific studies to back up that going Vegan is better for the environment?
http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2018-06-01-new-estimates-environmen... "High-impact beef producers create 105kg of CO2 equivalents and use 370m2 of land per 100 grams of protein, a huge 12 and 50 times greater than low-impact beef producers. Low-impact beans, peas, and other plant-based proteins can create just 0.3kg of CO2 equivalents (including all processing, packaging, and transport), and use just 1m2 of land per 100 gr…
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5522483/
Shows Vegan and Ovo-Lacto Vegetarian neck and neck.
As another poster pointed out, in many areas living a pure vegan diet is far WORSE for the environment as you have to expend considerable CO2 getting the correct foodstuffs there.
There's also the open question about many countries where the land is only suitable for pasture as it's not arable.
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#78Earlier quoted context omitted.
As the article mentions, individuals can do something about corporate pollution: - Buy less stuff. Corporations produce waste because we buy their stuff . Get the stuff you still buy from more environmentally-friendly companies, if possible. - Political action. Corporations need to be regulated and that can only happen through political action. Lobbies may have a lot of power, but in the end, it's the citizens who vo…
> Buy less stuff. This is becoming harder and harder with time. Believe me, I would love to buy my kitchen stove, washing machine, refrigerator, aspirator, air conditioner and vacuum cleaner from a local manufacturer. But there are none. How many household brands do really exist and how many are actually known and bought by almost everyone? Additionally, even if you are an idealist who wants to be the change they wan…
Political action is much more than just voting and it's been the major source of social changes in the last 200 years.
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
would your friends agree to give this up if, in return, everyone else gave them up too?
I would not. Whether I want to go somewhere 20km away (the other end of my city) or not has zero correlation if other people have cars or not.
Doesn't seem too bad to me with a bike and a city giving priority to bikes. Surely less convenient than using a car, but I guess you get used to it.
Like you are used to do it in something like 25 minutes with a car, even though there could be near-instant methods of travel available (it's science fiction but still to the point: when you don't have (or don't have any more, for some time) a better alternative, you can overlook many inconveniences).
Re: What can I do about climate change?
#80Earlier quoted context omitted.
As the article mentions, individuals can do something about corporate pollution: - Buy less stuff. Corporations produce waste because we buy their stuff . Get the stuff you still buy from more environmentally-friendly companies, if possible. - Political action. Corporations need to be regulated and that can only happen through political action. Lobbies may have a lot of power, but in the end, it's the citizens who vo…
> Buy less stuff. This is becoming harder and harder with time. Believe me, I would love to buy my kitchen stove, washing machine, refrigerator, aspirator, air conditioner and vacuum cleaner from a local manufacturer. But there are none. How many household brands do really exist and how many are actually known and bought by almost everyone? Additionally, even if you are an idealist who wants to be the change they wan…
If you are really dedicated you can buy used equipment that will substantially lower the impact of production of new goods. Older appliances might break more and require more maintenance but are repairable for the most part. Additionally you can get pretty good deals on last years tech that is still pretty cool.