Emily Cunningham

While there is certainly nothing wrong with making individual low-carbon choices, I am increasingly concerned with how the #actonclimate movement is emphasizing individual lifestyle over collective action. There are two problems with this (thread).https://twitter.com/EricHolthaus/status/1080273931955814400 …

So rather than tell folks "don't fly!" Let's instead ask: how can we - collectively - pressure the aviation industry to upgrade its technology, which hasn't really changed in 40 years (I am sure we are all tired of those ancient stinky planes...)

The problem with this is that upgrading the industry is insufficient at this point. We’ve used up the carbon budget. There is no future where we all don’t have to fly a lot less. Liquid fuels that are sustainable are in scarce supply and e-planes are small

I agree with you AND the emphasis still needs to be on collective rather than individual action. Individualism. It's what we know, breath, eat, live in this country. To primarily focus on individual activity doesn't challenge the dominate, status quo narrative. And we need to.

Where we're going to get the most leverage and be most effective is through collective action. It doesn't mean we can't also make individual choices that benefit climate. (I'm vegan for instance.) It's about where power is located.