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I get the point the author is trying to make, but I think the environmental savings on not buying a laptop are miniscule comparing to all the other components o

by Tade0 6y ago

I get the point the author is trying to make, but I think the environmental savings on not buying a laptop are miniscule comparing to all the other components of his carbon footprint. That flight from Belgium to Spain alone, which he likely took, was around 1,000 megajoules.

fy20 6y ago
For those who don't work in megajoules, that's around 277kWh, which an average EV would drive around 1000 miles on.
ClumsyPilot 6y ago
Thats what I was think - he would do more for environment by not eating beef for a year, or not flying, or using exclusively public transport / bike. Also 4000 megajoules is like 1/10th of the average energy spent in UK to heat a house, so upgrade your insulation and get a green energy provider.
glafa 6y ago
according to this article from the columbia journalism review: “For 10 years I interviewed engineers and scientists about new technologies and renewable energies. And I kind of learned during that period that, well, it doesn’t really work,” De Decker tells CJR from his home in Barcelona. Around the same time, De Decker stopped flying, opting instead to travel by train, boat, or bike. Readers would sometimes remark that while the magazine preached an ethos of low-tech, it still relied on the most prominent of high tech inventions: the internet. https://www.cjr.org/covering_climate_now/low-tech-magazine.php https://www.cjr.org/covering_climate_now/low-tech-magazine.p...
schrijver 6y ago
Buying less things, especially new things, especially new electronics, is still one of the easiest lifestyle changes you can make if you want to lessen your ecological footprint. Especially since electronics have their own specific impact on the environment (and human living conditions) because of e-waste and the mining of precious metals. It might not have the same impact on emissions as cutting out red meat, planes and automobiles, but it remains significant, and you can implement it in addition to these other changes (as glafa notes, OP doesn’t fly).

by Tade0 6y ago

fy20 6y ago

For those who don't work in megajoules, that's around 277kWh, which an average EV would drive around 1000 miles on.

ClumsyPilot 6y ago

Thats what I was think - he would do more for environment by not eating beef for a year, or not flying, or using exclusively public transport / bike. Also 4000 megajoules is like 1/10th of the average energy spent in UK to heat a house, so upgrade your insulation and get a green energy provider.

glafa 6y ago

according to this article from the columbia journalism review: “For 10 years I interviewed engineers and scientists about new technologies and renewable energies. And I kind of learned during that period that, well, it doesn’t really work,” De Decker tells CJR from his home in Barcelona. Around the same time, De Decker stopped flying, opting instead to travel by train, boat, or bike. Readers would sometimes remark that while the magazine preached an ethos of low-tech, it still relied on the most prominent of high tech inventions: the internet. https://www.cjr.org/covering_climate_now/low-tech-magazine.php https://www.cjr.org/covering_climate_now/low-tech-magazine.p...

schrijver 6y ago

Buying less things, especially new things, especially new electronics, is still one of the easiest lifestyle changes you can make if you want to lessen your ecological footprint. Especially since electronics have their own specific impact on the environment (and human living conditions) because of e-waste and the mining of precious metals. It might not have the same impact on emissions as cutting out red meat, planes and automobiles, but it remains significant, and you can implement it in addition to these other changes (as glafa notes, OP doesn’t fly).