Your Questions, My Answers - December 2023
Your Questions, My Answers - December 2023
Individual climate action, optimal carbon dioxide levels and surviving in academia
Wow! More than 50 excellent questions were submitted earlier this month. Below are the ones that I discuss in this post:1
What actions would you encourage individuals to take to make an impact in the climate crisis/climate change? As I've read your posts here on Substack, it's kind of leveled out my alarmism. However, reading your posts also makes me wonder what I can do to really impact any of this, as well as whether there are any real grounds for hope right now given that the changes you are saying we need to make aren't really happening, whether we have good data or not. What kind of response are you hoping to encourage from individual consumers like me? Daniel M.
I've perused the submitted questions and think you will need a break from all the climate stuff. (Your welcome!) Any sports related current events that have tickled your iconoclastic gene? William Z.
Roger, How do you survive at the University of Colorado Boulder? Brian W.
What's the optimum CO2 level in the atmosphere? Dean S. What is the optimum mean temperature of earth for humanity to flourish? Mike S. What is the optimal level of carbon dioxide? Pamela M.
Do you have any comments on the cost-benefit ratios of climate change policies? I believe Richard Tol has recently offered up some work on this topic. What do you think of it? Dale and Laura M.
Let’s get to it!
What actions would you encourage individuals to take to make an impact in the climate crisis/climate change? As I've read your posts here on Substack, it's kind of leveled out my alarmism. However, reading your posts also makes me wonder what I can do to really impact any of this, as well as whether there are any real grounds for hope right now given that the changes you are saying we need to make aren't really happening, whether we have good data or not. What kind of response are you hoping to encourage from individual consumers like me? Daniel M.
RP — My view is that individuals should make consumption/lifestyle decisions according to their personal values and individual means. That said, understanding the consequences of those decisions, even in the abstract, can be difficult or even impossible to know. For instance, is organic food really better for the environment? Is an EV better than a hybrid? Paper bags vs. plastic? Cloth vs. disposable diapers? Fake meat vs. chicken? And on and on. I’m not a big fan of evangelizing lifestyle choices of others.
When it comes to climate mitigation (i.e., GHG emissions) the actions that will really move the dial are policy changes, where policy means not just government, but also private sector and civil society. The consequences of these changes will be technological innovation and deployment that results in less human impacts and reduces risks of impacts. Agricultural intensification, energy production substitution and the dematerialization of the economy are all examples of how this works.
For me, the good news is that we are experienced in making such changes — look at health and agriculture for the best global scale examples. Take agriculture, people make individual choices about what to eat, and not everyone makes smart choices, but somehow, global life expectancy has doubled over the past century and food production productivity has more than kept pace. There is nothing magic or inevitable here, it is hard work. But we know how to do that work and that is why I am an optimist.
I've perused the submitted questions and think you will need a break from all the climate stuff. (You’re welcome!) Any sports related current events that have tickled your iconoclastic gene? William Z.
RP — Ha, Thanks! There are a few things I’m watching closely. One is the rapid evolution of big-time college athletics here in the United States. College football is on its way to becoming fully professionalized — or more accurately, the institutions of college athletics (notably universities) are catching up with the long-standing reality that big-time college sports are professional endeavors. I found this Q&A by Michael McCann to be particularly good. Big changes are coming. Other items I’m watching include the recent burst of activity related to doping in elite sport (e.g., Halep, Lira, Kenya …), the continuing debates over trans athletes and the soap operate that is LIV versus (or is that and) PGA. As a fan I am having a great time watching Arsenal at the top of the table and St. Pauli, invincibles to date, just off the top at the winter break!
Roger, How do you survive at the University of Colorado Boulder? Brian W.