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Pretending that the US could solve it single-handedly, and it were dispersed among every US citizen, what would that look like? Is that just about buying carbon

Pretending that the US could solve it single-handedly, and it were dispersed among every US citizen, what would that look like? Is that just about buying carbon offsets from non-profits that plant trees? I'm tired of "we gotta do something", I want to know what to do and what the math implies in terms of personal responsibility. Carbon neutral or carbon positive behavior.

mavhc 7y ago
Switch to electric everything (heating/cooling/transport) and buy renewable electricity. Stop eating meat. Stop buying stuff you don't really need.
- tunesmith 7y ago
  I don't doubt that that is necessary, but I'm not sure that would be sufficient. Like, if everyone in the US switched to electric heat/cooling and went vegetarian, does that make up for China, India, and Africa? I feel like I want a Drake equation for climate. Number of petawatt hours / year, number generated by fossil fuels, how much it needs to decrease (or have its growth slowed) to reach 1.5 degrees by whenever... but something simple that larger amounts of people can understand.
  - mavhc 7y ago
    Why do you think only people in USA would switch? Although they create 10x more CO2 than average iirc.
  - Glench 7y ago
    Some numbers from Saul Griffith at Otherlab: Decarbonizing with massive electrification will bring about a new American abundance. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/decarbonization-and-gnd-b8ddd569de16 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/decarbonization-and-gnd-b8d... How do we decarbonize? We don’t need a miracle. Everything we need to solve climate change is already here. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/how-do-we-decarbonize-7fc2fa84e887 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/how-do-we-decarbonize-7fc2f... Green New Deal: How much does fixing climate change cost the US? A real-world argument with numbers you can check for yourself. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/green-new-deal-how-much-does-fixing-climate-change-cost-the-us-d542bb9e67c8 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/green-new-deal-how-much-doe...
SiempreViernes 7y ago
If you can, make sure a carbon tax is imposed across all industries, and make sure it is enforced.
aksss 7y ago
Right, I feel that more people want me emotionally entangled in the issue to advance other policy/cultural goals rather than involve me at a practical level. For me, the "what to do" in my sphere of influence is: * Repair rather than replace * Avoid buying/using plastic trash if possible * Recycle where it makes sense * Follow basic guidance on proper disposal * Try to pick up a little bit of plastic trash that's not my own.
Tomminn 7y ago
Donate to cool earth. When I looked last, it cost about $300/year to offset my carbon footprint. Go offset yours 20x or 30x over, or whatever "x" you can afford without feeling resentful about it.

mavhc 7y ago

Switch to electric everything (heating/cooling/transport) and buy renewable electricity. Stop eating meat. Stop buying stuff you don't really need.

tunesmith 7y ago
I don't doubt that that is necessary, but I'm not sure that would be sufficient. Like, if everyone in the US switched to electric heat/cooling and went vegetarian, does that make up for China, India, and Africa? I feel like I want a Drake equation for climate. Number of petawatt hours / year, number generated by fossil fuels, how much it needs to decrease (or have its growth slowed) to reach 1.5 degrees by whenever... but something simple that larger amounts of people can understand.
- mavhc 7y ago
  Why do you think only people in USA would switch? Although they create 10x more CO2 than average iirc.
- Glench 7y ago
  Some numbers from Saul Griffith at Otherlab: Decarbonizing with massive electrification will bring about a new American abundance. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/decarbonization-and-gnd-b8ddd569de16 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/decarbonization-and-gnd-b8d... How do we decarbonize? We don’t need a miracle. Everything we need to solve climate change is already here. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/how-do-we-decarbonize-7fc2fa84e887 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/how-do-we-decarbonize-7fc2f... Green New Deal: How much does fixing climate change cost the US? A real-world argument with numbers you can check for yourself. https://medium.com/otherlab-news/green-new-deal-how-much-does-fixing-climate-change-cost-the-us-d542bb9e67c8 https://medium.com/otherlab-news/green-new-deal-how-much-doe...

SiempreViernes 7y ago

If you can, make sure a carbon tax is imposed across all industries, and make sure it is enforced.

aksss 7y ago

Right, I feel that more people want me emotionally entangled in the issue to advance other policy/cultural goals rather than involve me at a practical level. For me, the "what to do" in my sphere of influence is: * Repair rather than replace * Avoid buying/using plastic trash if possible * Recycle where it makes sense * Follow basic guidance on proper disposal * Try to pick up a little bit of plastic trash that's not my own.

Tomminn 7y ago

Donate to cool earth. When I looked last, it cost about $300/year to offset my carbon footprint. Go offset yours 20x or 30x over, or whatever "x" you can afford without feeling resentful about it.