Climate Change - The Languish 'Community' Responses?

[mongers]

What are 'we' doing about climate change, individually and as a community?

Might there be things we're doing and others approaches many of us could undertake?

Or are we mainly happy to kick cans down the road and rely on that old standard of 'this is too big a problem and can only be tackled by governments'?

Just under a hundred day till the Cop26 meeting in Scotland, the bright side is the US government is serious about the emergency we find ourselves in and will likely get some movement from over governments.
Though most of those key polluters seem addicted to the sound of tin cans on gravel.

[Eddie Teach]

Reproducing at a rate well under replacement level...

[The Brain]

Preach about switching to a nuclear society.

[Tamas]

I recycle so that plastic waste gets burned in Turkey instead on this island but that's about it I guess.

[Richard Hakluyt]

We have made a further reduction in meat consumption in the Hakluyt household, partly for health reasons.
My disabled son got a motability car and we paid extra so that he could have an electric car; my wife drives that when we take him on trips and loves it, so our next car will be electric.
For holidays I'm looking at trying to make them relatively low in carbon, so no weekends in Istanbul; now that I'm properly retired I will spend more time on trips and use trains rather than planes. So, if I go North america again it will be a mammoth lengthy business.

There is no point wearing a hair-shirt, the solution will have to be at the international and governmental level; but individuals can often reduce their carbon quite a bit with just a little bit of thought.

[Josquius]

Always been into recycling even before it was the norm.
I've owned 2 cars in my life. Only second hand. And small. I avoid cars where at all possible.
I'm always keen to get on board with public transport campaigns.
I have reduced my meat consumption a fair bit. Its not a set scheduled thing of meat free Fridays or anything but a majority of the days of the week I won't have meat, at the least not a substantial amount.
I really don't like to waste food.
I tried to get a heat pump, but something fucked up in the application and I wasn't chosen sadly. Would love to do this if it was affordable.
Hmm...
I planted a bunch of trees just on the outside of my fence and regularly tend to them, scattering rocks to stop lawn mowers et al, to make sure they grow.
And not quite global warming but more generally save the planet wise I don't maintain a bowling green lawn, I try to encourage clover and wild flowers as much as I can, minimising mowings.
I think I covered it? Not sure.

[Maladict]

No kids
No car
Try to avoid flying whenever possible
Recycling, trying to cut down use plastic packaging (it is really hard)
Reduced eating meat to about 2-3x a week
Cut out dairy except cheese

Working on a mid-career shift to sustainability
and looking into ways to adapt my home (grass roof or solar panels, better insulation)

[mongers]

No kids
No car
Try to avoid flying whenever possible
Recycling, trying to cut down use plastic packaging (it is really hard)
Reduced eating meat to about 2-3x a week
Cut out dairy except cheese

Working on a mid-career shift to sustainability
and looking into ways to adapt my home (grass roof or solar panels, better insulation)

A thoughtful process.



edit:
More than I'm doing.

[Legbiter]

Building and launching orbital weapons platforms to eventually target Chinese coal power plants from my subterranean volcanic supervillain lair.

[mongers]

Building and launching orbital weapons platforms to eventually target Chinese coal power plants from my subterranean volcanic supervillain lair.

Well that's certainly one plan, maybe not The plan. 

[celedhring]

Cutting on grocery bags or other single-use disposable plastics (straws, small water bottles, etc...)
No ordering single items or such online
Switched to a renewables energy plan

It probably doesn't make that much of a difference to my carbon print...

[Sheilbh]

Cutting on grocery bags or other single-use disposable plastics (straws, small water bottles, etc...)
No ordering single items or such online
Switched to a renewables energy plan

It probably doesn't make that much of a difference to my carbon print...

Yeah similar stuff for me - and I think mine is probably quite low.

I don't drive (can't drive). I signed up for renewable energy (but my flat has gas so it's just electricity). I re-use shopping bags, have a rucksack, tote bags etc (though I'm signed up to one of those meal kit people).

I don't generally eat meat at home - but I do eat a lot of fish (though I understand this is normally Scottish and sustainable - according to the fishmonger ).

Apart from parmesan or pecorino I don't really have dairy either - I prefer oat milk and don't really normally eat other cheeses.

I do fly for holidays - although if a train (especially a night train) I will take that. I know it's ineffective but I always pay the extra to off-set the carbon. It doesn't off-set the carbon but it probably does something.

Just under a hundred day till the Cop26 meeting in Scotland, the bright side is the US government is serious about the emergency we find ourselves in and will likely get some movement from over governments.

In many ways even the US is a sideshow - I think the most important thing is China is committed to energy transition.

Or are we mainly happy to kick cans down the road and rely on that old standard of 'this is too big a problem and can only be tackled by governments'?

Individual changes can have an impact but I think it's incredibly minor. I think it is so big and expensive a problem that you basically need the state - the huge financial resources of the state to pay for energy transition and also to fund research (like in a war for survival or during a pandemic).

[Legbiter]

Individual changes can have an impact but I think it's incredibly minor.

Yeah.

Convince the CCP leadership to phase out coal power. At the individual level it's just in-group signaling of your particular lifestyle brand. Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, etc. 

[mongers]

Cutting on grocery bags or other single-use disposable plastics (straws, small water bottles, etc...)
No ordering single items or such online
Switched to a renewables energy plan

It probably doesn't make that much of a difference to my carbon print...

Yeah similar stuff for me - and I think mine is probably quite low.

I don't drive (can't drive). I signed up for renewable energy (but my flat has gas so it's just electricity). I re-use shopping bags, have a rucksack, tote bags etc (though I'm signed up to one of those meal kit people).

I don't generally eat meat at home - but I do eat a lot of fish (though I understand this is normally Scottish and sustainable - according to the fishmonger ).

Apart from parmesan or pecorino I don't really have dairy either - I prefer oat milk and don't really normally eat other cheeses.

I do fly for holidays - although if a train (especially a night train) I will take that. I know it's ineffective but I always pay the extra to off-set the carbon. It doesn't off-set the carbon but it probably does something.

Just under a hundred day till the Cop26 meeting in Scotland, the bright side is the US government is serious about the emergency we find ourselves in and will likely get some movement from over governments.

In many ways even the US is a sideshow - I think the most important thing is China is committed to energy transition.

Or are we mainly happy to kick cans down the road and rely on that old standard of 'this is too big a problem and can only be tackled by governments'?

Individual changes can have an impact but I think it's incredibly minor. I think it is so big and expensive a problem that you basically need the state - the huge financial resources of the state to pay for energy transition and also to fund research (like in a war for survival or during a pandemic).

Good stuff, though I don't see it as an individual or state action question, I think it can and must be both, acting in concert.

Also whilst talk of transition is good, there's such a long lead up time for some of these projects, it's necessary for us to significantly cut back on our overall energy use now.

As in recent decades we've 'benefited' from historically cheap, readily available energy. Aiming to just replaces this with a similar level of slightly more expensive greener options, misses the far wider environmental impacts of such a high level of energy use, movement of people/resources and excessive consumption.

[Legbiter]

Aiming to just replaces this with a similar level of slightly more expensive greener options, misses the far wider environmental impacts of such a high level of energy use, movement of people/resources and excessive consumption.

The lifestyle of an immiserated Indian peasant is not going to be attractive to anyone but a handful of Western climate anchorites.