Read on Twitter
1/ Five learnings at the intersection of climate change and human psychology.
Some obvious, some less-so.
A thread
Some obvious, some less-so.
A thread
2/ The Ostrich Effect - Few individuals make an effort to measure their carbon footprint. We collectively bury our heads in the sand like ostrich. As management guru Peter Drucker famously said, âwhat gets measured gets managed.â
3/ I believe managing your personal carbon footprint starts with measuring it.
4/ Anthropocentric Thinking - Measurement is a good place to start, but while citing carbon footprints in mass units [tons, kgs, grams, pounds] is scientifically correct, itâs too abstract for people to empathize with.
5/ I find that framing carbon footprints in terms more familiar to the everyday human experience is more intuitive and resonant. For example: âYou offset 4,239 pounds of carbon â aka a road trip from Houston to Anchorage.â [and display it on a map!] People grok distances.
6/ Framing Effect - Most carbon calculators quote your carbon footprint in annual terms, e.g. 20 tons CO2/year.
While these may be highly accurate estimates, people donât experience life in annual increments â we live day-to-day.
While these may be highly accurate estimates, people donât experience life in annual increments â we live day-to-day.
7/ The more granularly you can measure something, the more ârealâ and credible it feels. If anything, people are not only scale insensitive, but have an empathy bias toward smaller-scales we encounter in daily life. https://twitter.com/BrianTHeligman/status/1018565880395988992?s=20
8/ A common analogy is that tracking your carbon footprint should be like counting calories. Nobody knows (or really cares) how many calories they ate last year â but we do know how many weâre supposed to eat in a given day (2000, give or take).
9/ Conspicuous Conservation - Behavioral economists have long discussed âconspicuous consumptionâ, the acquisition of premium goods for public display. In the context of charity and philanthropy, itâs âconspicuous compassionâ.
10/ As @robinhanson and @KevinSimler observe in The Elephant in the Brain, fewer than 1% of charitable donations are anonymous.
11/ This is why nonprofits go out of their way to help people broadcast their participation with âI gave blood todayâ stickers, pink ribbons, and public donor lists. In the context of sustainability, we have âconspicuous conservation.â
12/ Being seen being green is a powerful motivator, though we donât admit it to ourselves.
A fun example: The third generation Toyota Prius and second generation Honda Insight both came to the US in 2010 as the first mass-production hybrid vehicles.
A fun example: The third generation Toyota Prius and second generation Honda Insight both came to the US in 2010 as the first mass-production hybrid vehicles.
13/ In that first year, the Insight sold 20,962 units. Prius sold 140,928, despite the base Prius costing $3,000 more!
Why?
The Insight looked like a regular sedan with a âhybridâ sticker on the back. You couldnât pick it out from a lineup...
Why?
The Insight looked like a regular sedan with a âhybridâ sticker on the back. You couldnât pick it out from a lineup...
14/ Whereas when you see the Prius driving down the street, you know exactly what itâs about. This is also why Tesla removed the grill on 2nd gen Model S. https://www.businessinsider.com/new-tesla-model-s-removes-grill-2016-4
15/ Binary Rules vs. Rules of Degree â @rorysutherland observes that itâs much easier for people to obey binary rules as opposed to rules of degree. Consider running red lights (which I never do) compared to speeding (everyday).
https://www.joincolossus.com/episodes/64849045/sutherland-moonshots-and-marketing
https://www.joincolossus.com/episodes/64849045/sutherland-moonshots-and-marketing
16/ In the context of sustainability, we need sustainable solutions that fully replace existing products and services.
17/ Itâs much easier for users to reduce their climate impact by opting into the sustainable option once in perpetuity rather than having to make a constant effort to consume X% less. Cheating rules of degree is just too tempting.
