A good question Lady Ellah. Is the extra activity distracting intelligent folks? I have worked in academia for several years at some of the worlds top Universities, and I can tell you that the Climate Emergency is a significant distraction to my intelligent colleagues. It can feel like there is not much point in curing a disease or designing a faster computer when we are facing extinction as a species. Most don't sleep well.The idea that working harder to solve the problem is making the problem worse is a scary one, but that is not the feedback or 'vicious cycle' that is most worrying. It is more terrifying that as average temperatures increase, forests become drier, resulting is larger and more dangerous fires in the summer, leaving less forest to retain moisture and raising the average temperature. Similarly, a hotter planet means melting icecaps, smaller icecaps reflect less of the sun's energy, leading to a hotter planet. These are the kinds of downward spirals that are cause for alarm.All activity requires energy from somewhere, so you are correct. Thinking about saving the planet does come at a price. But the price tag on business-as-usual and limitless expansion is all of our lives, while the price tag on designing laws, financial tools and renewable energy solutions is just giving up the career you may otherwise have had in mind (which would also have used fuel).
A good question Lady Ellah. Is the extra activity distracting intelligent folks? I have worked in academia for several years at some of the worlds top Universities, and I can tell you that the Climate Emergency is a significant distraction to my intelligent colleagues. It can feel like there is not much point in curing a disease or designing a faster computer when we are facing extinction as a species. Most don't sleep well. The idea that working harder to solve the problem is making the problem worse is a scary one, but that is not the feedback or 'vicious cycle' that is most worrying. It is more terrifying that as average temperatures increase, forests become drier, resulting is larger and more dangerous fires in the summer, leaving less forest to retain moisture and raising the average temperature. Similarly, a hotter planet means melting icecaps, smaller icecaps reflect less of the sun's energy, leading to a hotter planet. These are the kinds of downward spirals that are cause for alarm. All activity requires energy from somewhere, so you are correct. Thinking about saving the planet does come at a price. But the price tag on business-as-usual and limitless expansion is all of our lives, while the price tag on designing laws, financial tools and renewable energy solutions is just giving up the career you may otherwise have had in mind (which would also have used fuel).