Can we solve the climate crisis without confronting global inequities?
A recent study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA found that white residents in the USA produce more climate pollution than black or hispanic residents, but black and hispanic people are exposed to more air pollution.
And that is just the USA! Think about the global inequities in the "haves" and the "have nots".
And how are we going to lift people out of poverty without making the climate crisis even worse?
If you are a resident in a wealthy country, is it your responsibility to address both problems at once? And what would that look like in terms of national and international policy?
Environmental Justice >
Affordable Sustainability in Transportation
Although CO2 emissions can come from many different sources, the largest contributors to CO2 emissions come from the burning of fossil fuels by method of transportation. Although individually we can do our part by driving less, or walking to places instead of driving, it is not entirely up to us. We must urge manufacturers and engineers, as well as public transportation officials to turn to a more sustainable solution to transportation and travel. Some changes have already been made, and there are more and more electric vehicles on the street. However, these vehicles are expensive and not many can afford them. We as a community should work towards encouraging companies to make more sustainable and affordable vehicles. By making sustainable travel and vehicles more affordable, this can encourage more and more people to travel sustainably. From my personal experience, most people turn to gas powered vehicles instead of electric ones not because they don't care about the environment, but simply because they cannot afford to purchase an electric vehicle. Those who cannot afford electric vehicles or even cars often turn to public transportation as well, and by making public transportation more sustainable, it will reduce carbon emissions even more.