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The @UNEP Emissions Gap report is out today
@ClimateOutreach coordinated & lead-authored a chapter on low carbon lifestyles (and their role in bridging the global emissions gap) https://climateoutreach.org/reports/unep-communicating-lifestyle-change/
The @UNEP Emissions Gap report is out today
@ClimateOutreach coordinated & lead-authored a chapter on low carbon lifestyles (and their role in bridging the global emissions gap) https://climateoutreach.org/reports/unep-communicating-lifestyle-change/
It is the first time the EGR has included a focus on lifestyle changes. A key message is that the majority of greenhouse gas emissions globally can be linked to household activities, so lifestyle changes are a prerequisite for reducing global emissions
BUT of course nothing works if we don't keep fossil fuels in the ground. There is no contradiction between system change & lifestyle change - they are 2 sides of the same coin. But we need to start better reflecting that in policy framings and approaches to engagement
Climate change is ’everyone’s problem’, but some people can (and should) do a lot more about it than others. The richest 1% have footprints that are 30 times higher than everyone else - here's a BBC piece picking up on this message today https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-55229725
But actually we should be careful about assuming this is just a yacht-owning uber-elite - most of 'us' are likely in the top 10% for emissions globally and so flying less (or not at all), cutting red meat, consuming differently are all sig changes that can shift social norms
What doesn’t require much of anyone’s attention are the smaller, less impactful changes – so don’t guilt trip yourself or others for leaving the lights on by mistake, or for not passing a ‘purity test’ of low carbon living
Lifestyle changes can mean significant ‘personal behaviours’ but can (and should) also mean thinking about our roles as citizens (who have a vote and a voice), owners of financial assets (with savings or pensions) and members of communities (sports clubs or interest groups)
Individual 'choices' are about all these things too and help to show that the individual & the system is all part of the same analysis. Both sides need to change to make this work - climate change is an everything including the kitchen sink problem
When social norms start to shift, low-carbon lifestyles become aspirational and expected, infrastructure shifts to ‘lock in’ positive changes and governments commit to a strategic approach to public engagement
As the social mandate gets stronger, the emissions gap gets smaller, and our chances of keeping dangerous climate change in check increase https://climateoutreach.org/bridging-gap-role-of-low-carbon-lifestyles/
The chapter was written by the brilliant @xsusiewang, @StuartBCapstick & Radhika Khosla with a stellar list of co-authors:
@nicolejvdb
@diana_nbd
@tim_e_gore
@ilonamotto
@lewisakenji
@ClaireHoolohan
Kate Power
@lwhitmarsh
@nicolejvdb
@diana_nbd
@tim_e_gore
@ilonamotto
@lewisakenji
@ClaireHoolohan
Kate Power
@lwhitmarsh
