To Stop Climate Change Americans Must Cut Energy Use by 90 Percent, Live in 640 Square Feet, and Fly Only Once Every 3 Years, Says Study

Reason ^ | July 2, 2021 | Ronald Bailey

[karpov]

In order to save the planet from catastrophic climate change, Americans will have to cut their energy use by more than 90 percent and families of four should live in housing no larger than 640 square feet. That's at least according to a team of European researchers led by University of Leeds sustainability researcher Jefim Vogel. In their new study, "Socio-economic conditions for satisfying human needs at low energy use," in Global Environmental Change, they calculate that public transportation should account for most travel. Travel should, in any case, be limited to between 3,000 to 10,000 miles per person annually.

Vogel and his colleagues set themselves the goal of figuring out how to "provide sufficient need satisfaction at much lower, ecologically sustainable levels of energy use." Referencing earlier sustainability studies they argue that human needs are sufficiently satisfied when each person has access to the energy equivalent of 7,500 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per capita. That is about how much energy the average Bolivian uses. Currently, Americans use about 80,000 kWh annually per capita. With respect to transportation and physical mobility, the average person would be limited to using the energy equivalent of 16–40 gallons of gasoline per year. People are assumed to take one short- to medium-haul airplane trip every three years or so.

...

Developing a high-energy planet will spur economic growth and innovation, helping to provide for all of the human needs that concern Vogel and his colleagues. Instead of trying to force Americans to live on the amount of energy currently available to Bolivians, the goal should be to enable people in energy-starved poor countries to gain access to energy supplies currently enjoyed by average Americans.

[palmer]

LEED is greenwashing, plain and simple. The electric car charging in the garage in my LEED building subsidizes the wealthy. They are 100% luxury cars (Tesla, BMW, etc). They screwed all the windows shut from the outside so we are stuck with righteous stale air.

[ConservativeInPA]

Know your enemy. Destroy your enemy. (Yes, this is war.)

I am a PhD researcher in ecological economics at the Sustainability Research Institute (SRI) (University of Leeds: School of Earth and Environment) and part of the Living Well Within Limits (LiLi) project as well as member of the Economics and Policy for Sustainability and Energy and Climate Change Mitigation working groups. My research is motivated by the wish to contribute to creating sustainable, just, and flourishing societies that enable everyone to live a good life.

I completed a BSc in Physics of the Earth System at Kiel University and an MSc in Climate Dynamics (Meteorology and Oceanography) at University of Bergen, before transitioning to the field of ecological economics for my PhD, to study the interlinked issues of ecological sustainability, human well-being, social justice and ‘development’ in their environmental, economic, social, and political dimensions.

My key interest is to understand which processes, structures, and ideologies drive or sustain unsustainable, unjust and harmful development, and how societies, provisioning systems and the broader political-economic paradigm would have to change to become sustainable and just and meet everybody’s basic needs.

I engage in teaching as seminar leader in both undergraduate and Master level modules in ecological economics (‘Introduction to Ecological Economics’, ‘Tools and Techniques in Ecological Economics’, and ‘Economics and Sustainability’) at the University of Leeds.

Research interests In my PhD, I take a systemic perspective to analyse how physical, social, economic and political factors and systems shape both environmental impacts and social outcomes of economic and non-economic provisioning activities. Specifically, I assess how targeted changes in provisioning systems could enable societies to meet everybody’s basic needs at sustainable levels of biophysical resource use. My research employs an interdisciplinary approach, conceptualising provisioning systems in terms of a wide range of physical, geographic, economic, social, and political factors across the spheres of production, consumption, and societal organisation. Using statistical cross-country analysis and simple modelling, I characterise the role of provisioning systems as intermediaries between biophysical resource use (energy use, CO2 emissions) and basic needs satisfaction, and explore the effects of potential provisioning systems changes to identify levers for low-carbon well-being for a wide range of countries.

Further research interests:
Human well-being, basic needs, community-led needs satisfaction
Climate justice, environmental justice and social justice
Climate mitigation, decarbonisation and low-carbon economy
Social provisioning and provisioning systems
Heterodox economics and political economy
Degrowth and post-growth
Societal transformation and system change
Sufficiency
Inequality
Power
Post-development and decolonisation
Sustainable cities
Low-carbon transport systems
Climate impact of aviation
Democracy, participation and citizens' assemblies
Climate dynamics
Climate impacts
Societal response to ecological disruption
Risks of societal collapse

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This is the drivel taught at most universities today. Yes, also here here in America. Your tax dollars help fund this crap. It is time to completely defund education.

[SmokingJoe]

In order to save the planet from catastrophic climate change, Americans will have to cut their energy use by more than 90 percent and families of four should live in housing no larger than 640 square feet

And what will the British be doing during all this then? Given that this is a British organization telling Americans how to live their lives.

[Dan in Wichita]

When the enviro nitwits get China, India, Mexico, and Russia to reduce their per capita carbon dioxide emissions to that of the US, then and only then can they come and talk to us about cutting back on energy consumption.

Until then, they can go F themselves.

[spudville]

Of course all these restrictions are subject to change without notice. Square footage may need to be reduced and an iron barred, lockable gate on the exit may be implemented in the future to ensure the limited travel restrictions. Of course you will be allowed 16 hours of work at a quarry chosen by your government overlords.

[EQAndyBuzz]

Plant trees. Billions of them. Problem solved.

[oldtech]

Where do they find these morons?

[Wonder Warthog]

Build nukes. Fission works, is well understood, and all known problems are easily solvable.

[xrmusn]

Where do they find these morons?

= = = = = = = = = = = = = =

I still contend it is PDJTs fault.

If he had only issued (at least) an EO that REQUIRED everyone to inhale and exhale on a regular basis, a lot of them would have assumed room temperature just to prove HE couldn’t tell them what to do or anything HE suggested was wrong.

[EQAndyBuzz]

Here is an idea. Let’s take a city, any city and convert it to all green energy. All buildings will be solar or wind powered. All vehicles will be electric. Meat is eliminated from everyone’s diets.

The city will have to be somewhere in the northern half of the US to prove this new green energy plan will be able to handle the winter. They can start with a small city, maybe Montpelier.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Corrected headline…

“To Stop Climate Change Americans the Proles Must Cut Energy Use by 90 Percent, Live in 640 Square Feet, and Fly Only Once Every 3 Years, Says Study”

[Dan in Wichita]

I would be willing to bet no city would volunteer for such an experiment (proving what a scam “Green Energy” is).

[ProtectOurFreedom]

People like that never build anything in their entire miserable lives. All they can do is throw obstacles in the way of the builders. It is beyond laughable that insufferable people like that “know” how everybody should live. It’s the “New Soviet Man” reborn.

[logi_cal869]

Anyone who promotes compulsory submission to such screed warrants broken legs.

Still waiting for that epidemic...

[metmom]

Lead by example, libs.

This is the same as wanting to improve a neighborhood and cracking down on the nicest house on the block while ignoring the slum lord property down the street.

The piddling little amount that we are going to be able to change will do nothing in light of the wanton pollution that China and other countries are producing.

[bobbo666]

No, don’t forget that commie trash like this get to re-define words. “Decent” now means none for thee and all for me. So, on your knees and say “thank you”.

[TexasFreeper2009]

what do chinese and indians have to do to help?

nothing? yeah... thought so! I’ll start listening, when you start taking it seriously yourself liberals!

[Lockbox]

I always ask who was the person driving the SUV which melted the ice during the Ice Age?

[Robert DeLong]

The elites will lead the way. /sarcasm

[Disambiguator]

What a useless CV. He basically is a Phd in virtue signaling.