To all of you out there who say that polluting companies should pollute less, if you pollute an unsustainable amount—that is, 20 percent of what the average American does—why should they change an not you? It’s tempting to say that since they pollute so much, they should stop more, but first: they aren’t polluting for the sake of polluting. They are serving customers who pay them, including you. Second, if[…] Keep reading →

If you think living in an apartment disconnected from the electric grid in Manhattan is hard, you haven’t had to deal with talking to people about sustainability when you’re doing it. People seem compelled to tell me their half-assed “sustainability” practices, nearly always self-righteously, as it they want my approval. I don’t look forward to people bragging, even less when their bragging doesn’t follow from whatever half-assed thing they did.[…] Keep reading →

I’m always working on more effective ways to lead on sustainability. Recall my definition of leadership: helping people do what they already wanted to but haven’t figured out how. To help others, I have to learn what they want, the opposite of opposing my values on them. Most people I ask tell me they support sustainability and are doing their best. They seem to think they aren’t anywhere close to[…] Keep reading →

People are going to read their preconceptions into what I’m asking, so if my question of this post seems provocative or you think it implies I’m promoting or espousing views, you’re misreading. There’s a pattern I see often. One example was last weekend at an alumni event at Columbia University. Former US Attorney General Eric Holder spoke. He’s a Democrat and liberal. As best I can tell, so were most[…] Keep reading →

In my book I talk about something that people respond with knee-jerk sayings that show they don’t know what they’re talking about because they hurt their own cause. Still, they can’t stop themselves from being know-it-alls and saying it. I found a way to fix the problem with a new word. The problem response comes when I mention Enlightenment values of (according to Steven Pinker) “reason, science, humanism, and progress”[…] Keep reading →

I’ve meant to post about this response from a reader to my post fro March 2022: Year 7, day 1 without flying, seeing our cultural and individual addictions. I’m not sure how to respond, but I know this site has a bug that doesn’t always show comments and didn’t want people to miss it. One big point I’ve realized since that post is that I have to clarify I don’t[…] Keep reading →

I was thinking about some things I don’t know. I’m confident humanity is better off with less plastic in the ocean, litter on the ground, and PFAS in our blood, but I don’t know: When a human sperm and egg become an independent human life the law should protect The optimal number of and amount of access to guns for self-defense, to protect against government overreach, to defend a community,[…] Keep reading →

I was in Washington Square Park charging my panels. A family of mother, father, and three kids sat on a bench near me, likely tourists. They had takeout food with plenty of packaging from a nearby store. A napkin fell through a gap between the benches so it was behind the father. He turned to try to pick it up but couldn’t reach it after trying contorting a few times[…] Keep reading →

The title says half of it: When you know someone will interpret everything you say their way, do you talk to them? The other half: What if they’re your parents? No, I didn’t just have a fight with a parent, but I do talk to a lot of people who interpret what I say as best I can tell based on preconceptions of what they expect someone talking about what[…] Keep reading →