Working inside or outside “the system” in lowering CO2 emissions?
I’m new here and am reflecting on what work of mine would be most effective in reducing co2 emissions. Hopefully my questions could also span broader discussions about this topic.
I’m working as a traffic planer for a consultant company. Traffic is a huge source of emissions in my country and so decreasing car traffic in favor walking, biking and public transport can have a huge impact. However I don’t feel like I’m making much impact in the field. I can make suggestions in the projects I’m part of but in the end the customer decides the level of ambition and in extension politicians, since our customers are mainly municipalities or the state transport administration. The bottle neck for traffic planing is not a lack of technical knowledge but rather political and cultural views. All of the most cost effective measures are technically very simple, like lowering speed limits in cities and towns, reducing public parking and banning external shopping centers.
Because of this I’m wondering if I would do more good in focusing on shifting the cultural view. I’m interested in the Transition towns movement and the appeal a more local and slower life seem to have for many. I’m also member of a bicycle promotion organization and doing some smaller activities there. However my full time work as a consultant doesn’t leave me with much time or energy to focus on these activities. I’m wondering if I should try to reduce my hours at work, or if my employer doesn’t agree to that quit and work with something else entirely that might pay less but give me more time and energy to spare.
Another option could be to keep working as a traffic planner but maybe try to find a position with a bit more mandate.
What’s your thoughts about this, or generally about the question of working inside or outside the system.
I don’t have an answer but you may get more responses on the EA Careers Discussion Facebook group or one of the Effective Environmentalism spaces.
Similar to David, I don’t have a definitive answer. I would agree with reviewing the links he shared and add one more.
The Founders Pledge Research Team are engaged in Effective Environmentalism efforts. They have some very recent/timely write-ups of grants they have made in the climate space. These are informed by current global political and technological dynamics. If you find their analysis persuasive, you might consider adjusting your work to align with the opportunities they call out—or (as I’ve been doing) donate to those groups while remaining in your current role.
I’ll add that, from what I’ve seen, there are not enough people who care/are knowledgeable about climate impacts of urban infrastructure and have a detailed knowledge of municipal planning and zoning processes that determine such urban infrastructure. Not sure what to do with this but just want to tell you that your experience and perspectives are needed and important in the climate+urban context.
Some more suggestions I’ll just put here:
- I’d recommend checking out strong towns (on r/strongtowns). They focus on better urban design from a community aspect (not climate focused) but just an interesting advocacy perspective
- For myself, as a citizen, I’m trying to get more involved in local zoning and our board of supervisors meetings. Perhaps thats something you could also consider - local politics tend to be the easiest to influence and most susceptible to influence from just a couple individuals.
- Run for local office? Fairly low-margin, but also I think relatively easy way to influence local zoning.
- True for anyone, but in addition to donating, also electrify everything you own. If possible, rooftop solar, electric vehicles(but bikes and taking the bus is obviously better), induction stoves, efficiency improvements, and heat pumps.