Is Your Carbon Footprint BS?

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (0:01)

This is How to Save a Planet. I'm Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson.

Alex Blumberg (0:05)

And I'm Alex Blumberg, and this is the podcast about what we need to do to address the climate crisis and how to make those things happen.

Hey, before we start the show, quick reminder, if you're not already listening to us right now through Spotify, please pause to take a second and make the switch. Starting in August, How to Save a Planet, along with almost every other Spotify original podcast, will be available only on Spotify. Don't worry, it's completely free. So download or open Spotify, search for How to Save a Planet and hit follow. All our episodes are already there for free. Okay, on with the episode.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (0:55)

So there's this question we get from a lot of listeners, and one listener in particular summed it up perfectly. She wrote in to ask us to settle an argument.

Anna (1:07)

Hi, Ayana and Alex. My name is Anna and I love your podcast. I just listened to the episode about which type of car is better for the environment, and I was wondering if you could weigh in on another debate.

So, my brother and I, we agree on a lot of things, but one topic that we always argue about is individual versus systemic policy-based change.

Alex Blumberg (1:33)

Oh, this debate.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (1:34)

This debate.

Alex Blumberg (1:36)

How much do our individual actions actually matter when it comes to climate change? Versus how much is it all about big systems and policies sort of beyond our individual control?

Like, how important is it to look at how sustainably sourced our sweatpants are? Or how important is it to go deep into the weeds on which LED light is best for the climate or that sort of thing?

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (2:02)

Yeah, and Anna says her brother thinks none of that stuff is actually going to get us out of the climate crisis. That climate change is a huge systemic problem and the only way to fix it is with big systemic solutions.

Alex Blumberg (2:15)

But Anna says in her voicemail, she's not so sure about that.

Anna (2:20)

I know that we're not going to recycle and bike and be on burger our way out of climate change, but I do have a slightly more optimistic view that individual consumer choices can make a difference. So, am I just a sucker or can individuals actually do something?

Alex Blumberg (2:38)

So, we focus a lot on the show on big picture solutions. Things like government policies to limit climate harming refrigerants or things that we can do to increase renewable power or change how we farm.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (2:49)

But we know, because you tell us, that a lot of you are wondering what should I be doing as an individual in my daily life and do those individual actions even matter?

Alex Blumberg (3:02)

One listener even told us about a spreadsheet he made tallying up all his family's actions.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (3:09)

I love a spreadsheet.

Alex Blumberg (3:10)

And the associated carbon footprint of each action, sort of like trying to win other footprint down. And another one of our listeners, this listener named Mark, wrote, is there just one thing that would make a real impact? Maybe cutting out cheese or something.

Oh, Mark.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (3:26)

Oh, Mark. If only it were that simple.

Alex Blumberg (3:29)

On today's episode, which originally aired back in March, we are going to dive into this debate between Anna and her brother. Do individual actions even matter? And if so, which ones are the most important? That's all coming up after the break.

Although, spoiler alert, cutting out cheese is not at the top of the list. Sorry, Mark.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (3:49)

Which is really unfortunate because I'm allergic to cheese, so if that were the answer, I'm a freaking angel.

Alex Blumberg (3:55)

You'd be even more of an eco-angel than you already are.

Katharine Wilkinson (3:57)

I've never had cheese in my entire life.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (4:00)

Alright, stick around.

So, we have a debate. Ana says that individual actions matter, her brother says they don't. So today, we're going to devote half the episode to one side and half to the other and see who comes out on top.

Alex Blumberg (4:27)

And in the first half, we're going to argue Ana's brother's side, that individual actions don't matter that much at all. And to help us in this debate, Ayana, we brought in your friend, friend of the show, Katharine Wilkinson.

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (4:40)

Dr. Katharine Wilkinson is my partner in All Things Feminist Climate Renaissance. She and I co-edited the anthology All We Can Save. We co-founded a new nonprofit, the All We Can Save Project, to support women leading on climate. And the reason Katharine is the perfect person to talk to about this topic is not because I adore her. It is because she was the lead author on a book called Drawdown.