Global Warming - if everyone lived like you?

[lightisnotwhite]

I pointed out that the 1970’s were more eco friendly as shops were shut on Sundays, no Amazon delivery and less stuff generally. Food was simple and a picnic was boiled eggs and lettuce in Tupperware. One car per household. Houses weren’t heated as they are now and it was normal to have a wash rather than Bath or shower everyday.

I think lots of my childhood expectations have continued and I don’t buy “stuff” unnecessarily. No take away coffees, clothes are 80% second hand washing machine is on twice a week, I drive to work but do the 20 minute walk into town. No long haul flights every year.So I don’t think I’m too bad.

However if everyone in the developing world lived like I do offset by those who live more extravagantly would we still be in trouble? I think probably but maybe I’d buy us a few years.
What about how you live.How doomed would we be?

It would be interesting if there was an app where you could fill in your details and it would work out ‘If everyone lived like you’ what the world would be like.

www.footprintcalculator.org/home/en

I get you. I remember my mum going to a Tupperware party and buying some plastic tubs and this was very exciting at the time. My dad had a tin “bait box” and sandwiches were wrapped in grease proof paper. I have gone back to this.

Took the test - that’s an eye opener- we don’t drive much or fly. Good thread OP.

Hmm. We drive too much. I’m hoping our car use will go down when small goes to school, but at present it just isn’t possible to do nursery and still get to work on time. We don’t fly, but do a long drive once or twice a year (-800 mile round trip).
I generally try to get stuff second hand if possible, I usually buy my clothes new, but buy very few of them, am still wearing ten year old tops.
Standardly do about five loads of laundry a week, this is reducing as the kids get older. Do use a tumble dryer all winter through, but again this is partly a time issue. I think if I was at home all the time I could live in a more sustainable way as I’d have more time to commit. Oh meat we should reduce as well, although I do generally try to buy the best I can & locally.
I think if everyone lived like me, we’d still be a bit fucked tbh.

Local fish and chip shop charges extortionate prices largely based on its eco friendly sustainable oils and such - wraps a single bag of chips in literally seven massive sheets of paper.

They must go through a full tree each day in that place.

I'm happy with just one sheet for the chips and a second layer of titty newspaper or whatever.

I go months without being in a car, don't drive and don't own one. Holiday once every 4 or 5 years but not long haul.I live a pretty simple lifestyle, not overly consumerist. Buy 2nd hand a lot. Don't live in an oversized home. Children walk to school, dh has company car used only for work.
That's the good side.
As a family, however, we are meat eaters, are indulgent with energy usage at home, and do not always buy the most eco friendly options because of cost.
We could do a lot worse and a lot better.
No, the world could not sustain everyone living like I do.
I think people kid themselves a lot so they don't need to accept their own part in this.
I need to make improvements.

Mine isn't too bad. I could do better re heating bills, buying less processed food.

I found a rough formula online that calculated my carbon footprint as something meaningful.

I'm like you OP in background. No takeaway coffees, buy things that last, mend things if I can, keep our heating low, eat seasonally/locally, very little red meat, 1 shorthaul trip per three years etc.

Calculating my & DC lifestyle (mileage, heating units, typical food miles etc) generates carbon equivalent to that absorbed by 66 mature native broadleaf trees.

I have 12 mature broadleaf trees and no room for any more. We are significantly in deficit

2.9 earths here apparently.

I'd like to use my dryer less (need to de jungle my garden so I can actually use the washing line) and find a shampoo bar that doesn't leave my hair feeling like its covered in a film.

I get frustrated as DH (retired so home all day) has the heating on full blast with windows open. I go round muttering to myself and slamming windows shut.
He also seems to have become a bit forgetful as I’m forever finding lights on in empty rooms.
Although my constant digs about him going out to buy something for tea, while food goes off in the fridge, seems to have hit home.

Not sure why I should live a miserable life so those who live extravagantly can do as they please but crack on op. Who needs heating with the warm glow of martyrdom?

3.5 earths for me like a @FindingMeno said I think I do great in some aspects but also areas I could improve on, I rarely drive but I do fly longhaul once a year, we don't have heating (not UK based) we also don't have aircon but we do use a wood fire daily for about a month of the year. 80% of my food is locally produced with 60% of that coming from under 10km away but the other 20% includes a lot of products shipped in from abroad. We compost anything that can be composted and recycle al glass but we don't have a plastic recycling center so that all goes to landfill.
Overall our electric consumption is low water is 100% solar heated for 8 months of the year with a mix of solar and electric for the other 4. I don't own a tumble drier and our house is small so general lighting etc. is not huge. The biggest area I think I could change is to try and reduce the level of imported products I buy and reduce the amount of meat I eat. The biggest impact would probably come on cutting out on the longhaul flight but that is once a year to visit home and not something i'm willing to give up all other holidays are local and usually camping.

3 earth's. I never fly and barely drive. And my energy is all renewables.
I blame cheese and eggs.

I found this yesterday.

I don't drive or fly and buy 90% of my clothes 2nd hand. I'm also childfree by choice so if everyone lived like me, the planet would be free of pesky humans within the next 100 years!

Probably really bad just by virtue of being someone in a developed country, having household wealth in the top few % globally (most of us here do).
I am much better than a lot on here - I certainly don’t wash towels every use, I don’t use the washing machine every day, don’t use a tumble dryer, buy second hand where I can, used cloth nappies, breastfed, walk to school etc… But I’m sure I’m still part of the problem.

I don’t fly and we have one car, which we use solely to take the kids to school and fetch the shopping. We try to use what we have, minimise food waste and buy second hand wherever possible.

I am definitely part of the problem though. We use our tumble dryer daily as our garden is too damp to dry washing in. Over Christmas, even with buying second hand by default we generated a shocking amount of rubbish. I’m determined to do better this year. I’ve already got my husband to agree to wrap in reusable fabric next year and we are going to really look at what we can do better.

2.7 earths for me. No car and I don't use public transport. Too much meat and packaged food. No idea about my fuel efficiency so I assumed it was bad. I put 20 flying hours a year down which is probably less than I would like.

The footprint calculator is really interesting. I got 2.8 Earths! But I don't think it's possible to get it down to 1 Earth, as it allocates you a share of state/commercial carbon too. I guess this shows the importance of tackling both our personal footprint and also putting pressure on government to change, and to force change at a global level.

Mine was 3.5 earths. I find it slightly grating as I scored low for everything except transportation. I don’t fly, I don’t eat meat, I make clothes last. However, I do 100 miles a week in my old banger to care for an elderly parent. I shouldn’t be shamed for that.

Mine was 3.5 earth's. We don't fly, have one car, are low-ish energy users, but we do eat meat a couple of times a week, and dairy and eggs daily.

The test isn’t working for me, but I only have one child, don’t drive, only fly once every 3-4 years. I don’t have a tumble dryer or dishwasher and probably eat meat 2-3 times a week, so I don’t think I do too bad.

The link to measure our footprints is interesting, but my house was built over 100 years ago, so no new resources were wasted in building it. I know the other questions were about efficiency and numbers under one roof, but I wondered if this was factored in. It looks like a US based questionnaire where perhaps people seek more new builds?

Mine is 2.2 earths. Not sure about validity though. Main issue is food, I might get some raised peat free beds and grow my own.