Power Economics

Chapter 5Your Role in Reducing Carbon Output

It's easy to ignore problems when it seems as though someone else will handle them. That's one of the reasons we're not acting collectively to tackle big problems such as climate change and air pollution. On some level, we simply assume that it's not our job.

We assume that eventually, some well-funded organization or omnipotent government agency will step in and make the problems go away. Or we assume that “market economics” will magically solve our problems while simultaneously creating new wealth for savvy investors.

I respectfully disagree with those assumptions. You want to know who's going to solve our problems? Look in the mirror. We've already got the tools and we know how to use them. This chapter will show you how to get started and how to keep going.

Ancient prophets used guilt, shame, and fear to sway their audiences. Those old-fashioned rhetorical techniques aren't my style. When I'm making the case for energy efficiency, I focus on the upside rather than dwell on the downside. Fortunately, there's plenty of upside to talk about.

That said, there is an inescapable link between wealth and carbon output. Bigger is not better, especially from an environmental perspective. If you own a large home, it's probably creating more pollution than your neighbor who owns a small home. The same holds true for automobiles. If you drive a big gas guzzler, you're polluting more than your friend who drives a compact hybrid.

I'm not even ...