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It is just the opposite of fantasy: Wearing warm clothing indoors is a technology that exists now and is a completely viable way to reduce energy needs. Clothin
by oftenwrong 6y ago
It is just the opposite of fantasy: Wearing warm clothing indoors is a technology that exists now and is a completely viable way to reduce energy needs. Clothing is more affordable now than at any other point in history. Heating all buildings to a comfortable temperature at all times in a sustainable way is, as you said, a hard problem - one for which there is currently no solution. Switching the world over to sustainable energy sources for heating and cooling is not simpler than convincing people to adjust their thermostats and wardrobe.
- hyko 6y agoconvincing people to adjust their thermostats and wardrobe That’s the missing chasm in the plan: how are we going to convince people to abandon luxury (real or perceived), comfort, and status in the name of efficiency? Especially when we’re talking about something so fundamental as warmth, as expressed as clause two in the phrase safe and warm when describing basic necessities. The image of someone turning down their thermostat and wearing thermals at home evokes images of hardship that will be difficult to dislodge (not to mention all the impracticalities and flat out dangerous aspects others have pointed out). By comparison (in a technologically advanced capitalist society with a mature consumer culture) the challenges of developing and scaling renewable technology that fulfils people’s wants and needs are child’s play.