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https://medium.com/the-new-climate/one-climate-action-that-really-matters-buy-an-ev-6681f29b0b98>
"Among all the angst about climate change, more and more people are asking,
What can I do? The usual answer is to consume less, use mass transit, or
maybe install solar on your roof. Manage your carbon footprint — don’t fly,
become a vegan. All of those will add something good to the mix, but a better
idea with far more impact is to buy an EV.
If you think about it, the number one thing we need to do is create an economy
that no longer emits the greenhouse gases (GHG) that cause climate change.
Scientists say we need to be at 350 ppm of carbon in the atmosphere, but we are
at 417 ppm. Before industrialization, we were at 280 ppm. We have gone way past
what the biosphere can withstand. Really big changes are necessary.
One way to accomplish those changes is to browbeat people into living
differently. We could ration fuel, limit food and water to prescribed levels
through food stamps for everyone, rip out the roads and force everyone onto
mass transit, and stop everyone from buying things they want — all to reduce
consumption. There’s a chance it could work. If you can’t persuade them,
perhaps force will be required. Some will argue that such force would be the
cost of our sins and better for everyone. But this would yield a world few
people would want to live in.
The overall problem with reducing consumption as a strategy is that it doesn’t
actually change very much. No one invests creatively to drive new solutions
into a shrinking economy. Instead of qualitatively changing
how we meet our
needs, we just do less of the bad thing, but
the bad thing itself never
changes. If you drive less, you still need gasoline to drive. If you heat
less, you still need fuel oil or natural gas to heat your home — just less. If
you buy less, you still need to buy a bunch of stuff that gets to you by way of
the same system that currently exists and is dependent on fossil fuels. Given
what we are up against on fossil fuels, “doing less” just isn’t going to cut
it.
This is where buying your EV comes in. Yes, many people will point out that you
still have to mine for lithium and rare minerals. Yes, you still need steel or
plastic for car body parts. Yes, there is a carbon cost, at least today, to
building an EV. But an EV has something none of the “consume less” strategies
have — direct impact innovation that will require real qualitative change
throughout the energy economy. Here’s what I mean."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
