I think it’s safe to say that the student lifestyle imparts a pretty small footprint on the earth. Many of my friends in the city cycle, take the ttc, co-habitate with others in small-ish apartments, buy used books, used clothing, local food, and some are even vegetarian. Our modest lifestyles are quite eco-friendly. This is mostly because most of my student friends are broke as a joke.
A sign of social status lies in material things, cars, gym memberships, imported food from Thailand, big screen tv’s, condos. It seems like the richer you are, the more energy you use. Maintaining such a social status requires that you stay on the cutting edge of consumerism. How could one not partake in a weekend wine tasting tour in Niagra on the Lake? Or deny oneself of a shopping trip to New York?
Travel is one of the most significant signs of social status, vital for being a cultured and well travelled individual. Air travel in particular poses an unmitigated catastrophe for the environment. As well as carbon dioxide, jet engines produce oxides of nitrogen and water vapour, both powerful warming agents.
Those who have the money to travel and buy things obviously have a larger footprint than those who don’t. But there are different implications in flying than don’t exist in choosing which car to buy, for example. There is not much I can do about the fact that my entire mothers side resides in New Zealand. I can’t try and prevent her from visiting her brothers once a year (that would be most insensitive.) Nor can I deny that I myself would like to retain ties to my family down under. Choosing to buy an SUV over a Corolla doesn’t pose such a personal dilemma.
Cheap airfares and infinite destination possibilities make it hard for a traveller to resist. How can one truly experience another culture without it? Unfortunately, this also means treading pretty hard on the earth. The technologies for reducing fuel consumption are improving efficiency by 1 or 2 % per year, while air travel numbers are rising over 5% per year. Bus travel, where possible, is a cheaper and more environmentally friendly alternative. But sometimes, it is just not possible.
In an interview with the Guardian, Chris Martin talked about his song Twisted Logic. He called it “an intense, angry track encouraging people to make the right decisions about how they live their lives and how they treat the planet” A little futher into the interview, he states that “the band could now afford to fly wherever possible, and the increased privacy and speed mean that Apple will be able to join her father on tour more often.” Hmm …
Obviously, no one is perfect. Chris Martin is hardly a monster for wanting to take his daughter on tour with him. If anything, it makes him a better father. But the fact remains: stepping into an airplane pretty much makes up for any other green things we do.
Even as I continue to write about the environment on this blog, I have participated in air travel almost more times than I can count. Maybe this is utter hypocrisy. I do take the ttc, and I recently bought a rad bike. This is how I get around Toronto. I don’t fly all the time, but it is a necessary part of my family life. Conflicted as I feel about it, staying in touch with my aunt and uncle, cousins, and family friends involves hopping on a plane - unfortunate for many reasons, but awesome for many reasons. Until I get a hovercraft, or find a friendly wale who could give me a ride, I remain unsure of the best way to go about air travel.
No comments:
Post a Comment