Powerless or Powerful?
Creating a personal decarbonization movement as an act of impact and integrity
What now? It’s been a year, and then some. For those of us in the climate solutions community, a heightened sense of despair and panic that we just won’t confront the crisis in time.
It is tough to untangle the feelings – but one thread that stands out to me is that we are hardly powerless to do something about climate change – particularly, our ability to dramatically reduce our own climate impact. And when I say “our”, I mean you and me, dear reader, and those of us who believe climate change is a substantial threat to civilization as we know it.
I believe we are powerful in our ability to continue our climate solutions momentum. Consider the following:
· 54% of US adults describe climate change as a major threat to the country’s well-being[i].
· Ample, unsuppressed, scientific information is widely available describing the threats of climate change.
· A powerful combination of knowledge and technology is available to allow individuals to cost-effectively reduce and even eliminate their climate harm, and unsuppressed how-to information is easily and widely available.
While it is true that in the past the fossil fuel industry suppressed the truth about climate change, and that for many years climate solutions for many sectors remained out of reach, things have changed dramatically for the better. We DO know the truth about climate change. We DO have the ability to dramatically reduce our climate harm.
I take exception to the line of thought that somehow resolving the climate crisis must primarily be an act of resistance. First off, we simply don’t have time for awaiting a long dialectic to resolve – aggressive action is needed now.
Also, speaking personally here, my composite of influences – the example of grandparents, college ethics and philosophy classes, Boy Scouts – you name it – adds up to a central conviction that taking responsibility for one’s actions, and living a life of alignment between belief and action, is core to human integrity.
Even more importantly, I believe a “resist first and foremost” approach, while beguiling, stands potentially to disempower – because the action may or may not result in actual impact and movement. An “act first” approach is empowering because it yields actual results. With an “act first” stance, what forces of opposition do or don’t do doesn’t matter – because we have the means of impact in our own hands. I, for one, am exhausted by seeking a meaningful exchange with the other side – while I believe dialogue (whether expressed as resistance or conversation) is important, my money’s on making actual change in the realms we most control – ourselves and our families. I firmly believe as we move into the next four years, this stance will be critical for forward movement and our own mental health.
Ultimately, the proof is in the numbers. A recent International Energy Association report[ii] found that the increase ($294b) in worldwide household decarbonization spending outpaced that of the corporate and government sectors between 2016 and 2023. Clearly, leadership begins at home – what we do matters.
Five actions to start off 2025 right
1. Check out the Climate Responsible guide to personal decarbonization – what and why
2. Calculate your family’s carbon footprint.
3. Download the Climate Responsible action checklist.
4. Do a stuff purge of one room, and if it feels good, do another!
5. Measure the energy use of all your plugged in stuff, and get rid of energy hogs.
[i] https://pewrsr.ch/3saE1wX
[ii] IEA (2024), Change in energy investment volume by region and fuel category, 2016 versus 2023, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/charts/change-in-energy-investment-volume-by-region-and-fuel-category-2016-versus-2023, Licence: CC BY 4.0