Couple great things about it: avoid methane emissions in landfill, turbocharges your garden (or someone else's), and you get a much better sense of how much food you're wasting — the biggest source of emission.

Oh, and composting doesn’t have to be hard anymore. I wrote all about it: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/02/21/home-composting-new-technology/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com

It matters! The transportation sector is now the largest source GHG emissions in the US: 27%. Decarbonizing that is critical. While not perfect, EVs are a necessary step in getting US emissions on track. Of course, it’s best to walk, bike, share, etc. but electric mobility is important, especially as we decarbonize the electricity grid. The one exception?

The electric Hummer is actually worse than many gasoline vehicles.

You, like most people, probably know 97% of climate scientists conclude that the Earth is rapidly warming because of human activity. But that doesn’t convince everyone! Yale estimates only 11% or “dismissive” and 11% more are doubtful. So what do we do with this 22%?

I actually wrote about this a while ago, and there’s an excellent Reddit thread exploring this topic more: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/5zvuxx/former_climate_change_deniers_what_changed_your/

So Yale Climate Connections analyzed 66 answers describing the motivation behind people’s conversion from denier to believer. The biggest reason was a slow acceptance of clear scientific evidence. For many, seeing graphs of atmospheric carbon dioxide and overwhelming data supporting the conclusion that humans are rapidly, catastrophically warming the planet was convincing. “It’s just difficult for me to deny it with the overwhelming amount of scientific evidence that supports it,” wrote one.

But they have to get there first, and in many cases, people aren't even willing to consider these facts. That's where values come in.

Many people rejected climate science in the first place because of 1) their families 2) personal politics and identity, which were a close second. “Mostly because my family rigorously shot it down whenever it was remotely mentioned,” one person wrote in the Reddit thread. Another writer had grown up “actively and obnoxiously denying climate change because my dad told me it wasn’t real.”

A third major reason was a desire to avoid the enormity of the problem. “I really doubted it for a while, because honestly it scared me,” one poster wrote. “I figured if I just denied it and pretended it wasn’t a thing, it wouldn’t be and it would just go away.”

So how do you change peoples’ minds? Lead with values. Throwing scientific studies in people’s faces is likely to have the opposite effect, putting people into a defensive crouch. People tend to reject the validity of scientific evidence if it conflicts with worldviews.

You can present information in ways that already align with people’s beliefs without triggering emotional, defensive responses. As a good analysis of the research summarizes: "Conservatives are more likely to embrace climate science if it comes to them via a business or religious leader, who can set the issue in the context of different values than those from which environmentalists or scientists often argue. Doing so is, effectively, to signal a détente in what has [been] called a “culture war of fact.”

That gives facts a chance.

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Thanks for doing this.

I’m not sure if you’re familiar with 500 Fifth Avenue, but it was designed by the same firm as the Empire State Building. I used to think of it as a baby brother of the ESB and I’m curious if you had any info on that building?

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Have you ever been to the basement where the cables for the elevators are?

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Good question but let me reframe it. You’re absolutely right. Any one us don't have an outsize impact on the 36.3 gigatonnes the world emits each year — except perhaps Kim Kardashian and others flying their private jets. But a more useful question is how are you part of a solution. There’s two ways that I can see:

1. You reuse your own emissions a small, but personal meaningful amount. This has the added benefit of bring your life in line with you personal values (and you may even have more fun)
2. You’re a walking billboard for how to do things a different way.

I personally think #2 may be the biggest impact you have by shifting norms. Here’s what I wrote in my first column:

"While global problems don’t seem entirely amenable to individual action, that is only part of the story. Human culture and global warming are not linear systems. They are driven by exponential curves, social contagions and threshold effects. They exist at the messy confluence of biology, economics, psychology and physics.

Take solar panels. In 2021, researchers in the journal Nature published a paper studying why people install solar panels on their roofs. Subsidies, geography and policy were all considered. The most powerful factor? Whether a neighbor already had solar panels. There was even a proximity effect. People living within two blocks of homes with panels were the most likely to buy their own. Solar panels, in other words, were contagious. With climate, we must consider social norms as well as policies and incentives."

How bad is traveling by plane compared to owning and driving a new car?

Is having a compost pile for my garden helping the climate?

How much of a difference does recycling make?

For carbon capture, what’s the best tree to plant in Denver?

How much is me buying an electric car going to help in reducing global warming?

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In your experience, what are some effective ways to communicate about climate change to people who might be skeptical or dismissive of the issue, and how can we bridge the gap between different perspectives on this important topic?

You might not be the problem, but you certainly have to be part of the solution ;)

Realistically, how much does the average Joe really contribute to climate change such that it could be perceived as appropriate to focus on, "personal efforts to combat climate change," when there exist things like corporate efforts, industrial efforts, governmental efforts, etc.? Why am I the problem?

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How do you like the new exhibition?

Such a cool job. Thanks!

How did you get this job?

How many proposals have you seen?