This is less helpful. The idea that we must all wear hair shirts, drive sucky cars and live in cold, dark houses is โฆ well, letโs say,ย unappealing. If this is the best PR pitch that we can conceive, global warming is here toย stay.
There are two problems with this approach. First, there is a danger that people will make one or two personal sacrifices and then feel that they have done their part for the planet; that having accepted responsibility andย taken some personal action,ย they will returnย to theirย apolitical lives with a clear conscience. The really big structural changes that only government can make will remain unmade for lack of publicย pressure.
The second problem is that this sort of holier-than-thou scolding is much more likely to turn people off than inspire them to action. For example, the attached Independent Online story includes a quote from โEnvironmental Business Consultantโ Lynne Franks, who says, โIโm trying to see that everything I do in my life has some value to the planet and to the people that live onย it.โ
Everything? Really? If Ms. Franks is sincerelyย trying to recruit friends and influence people, she might better say, โIโm trying to see that everything I do in my life has some value to the planet andย three times a week I try to quaff a really excellent Cabernet.โ Truly, a wretched, abstemious planet that honours only self-deprivation is itselfย unsustainable.
Still, thatโs no reason to leave the lights on, so itโs worth reading the Independentโs list of suggestions. Keep in mind, though, that holidaying in the U.K. is only a climate-friendly option if youโre starting in the U.K.
