@Argus@mastodon.technology I think you are right, We also know social media is used to manipulate people.
Today's young people are looking to these politicians to do something, if nothing happens grown ups get blamed for voting for them.
Today's young people are somewhere between discouraged, hopeless and angry.
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology
I just wonder how many of those young people protesting out side COP26 either walked or cycled to the protest.
Last COP some tried to sail to the COP. And I did see someone try to force the security forces to maintain accessibility for cyclists.
https://twitter.com/UrbanistTOC/status/1455151495037456384?s=20
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology
I just asked that as taking a car, or other transport running on fossil fuels to a conference to protest about use of fossil fuels is rather hypocritical.
Sure these young people can't drive but surely they can set up a massive online protest, we have done that with website blackouts or social media boycots etc. we have had co-ordinated posting on social media.
Maybe older people can use the tech better than these kids can.
@zleap @Argus It's an area of active debate among climate activists how much one should give up on current tools in order to try and secure a bigger victory later.
Most people think the rich people taking private jets to climate conferences are a bunch of hypocrites.
Scientists or activists trying to travel by the lowest carbon option available? That's less clear.
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology
So do climate scientists travel more often than politicians or rich people.?
I think the occasional long haul to a world conference is probably acceptable.
There's been increasing pressure to try and avoid flying among some more activist leaning scientists.
The standard scientific career involves a lot of travel, and there currently isn't any good way to decarbonize air travel.
Batteries can't supply the energy density for long range aircraft for the foreseeable future.
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology Indeed,
Maybe what we need is the sort of challenge JFK set, before this decade is out, put a man on the moon and bring safely back to earth.
But make the challenge before this decade is out, find a way to make air travel fully green and sustainable world wide.
We then throw a lot of science behind it, funding, education too so we can solve the problem, and importantly ensure we can take it forward, we need people to maintain the new transport craft, but also fly, research newer craft and improvements.
There are groups working on it, and there are some short range electric aircraft almost in service. Long range & fast is quite far away though.
Currently high speed rail can offer similar enough speeds and is easier to build.
The TGV is a very low emission travel method (because of France's heavy use of nuclear power) at 3.2g of CO2/km. Bicycling is around 8g of CO2/km and it rapidly increases from there.
This tweet had some comparisons
https://twitter.com/brettbergie/status/1455195467063566336?s=20
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology
The projects need more exposure soi people know about them, I suspect we don't for a reason, politicians don't want us knowing there are workable solutions
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology I will try and share that more widely,
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology I think there are pockets of this, what about the US Amish communities, for example.
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology Social media can be a force for good I think this conversation demonstrates that really well.
if we didnt have social media, maybe media reporting would be better.
@alienghic @Argus@mastodon.technology
Or perhaps users of social media,
@zleap @Argus
If you want global warming solutions there's https://drawdown.org/
Though I think the real reason our political leaders continue to fail at making a solution is the most direct solution is a smaller economy more focused on peoples well being than buying more and more stuff.
Butan is probably already below net-zero, but they deliberately prioritize a less materialistic society.
https://www.gviusa.com/blog/bhutan-the-first-carbon-negative-country-in-the-world/