-
-
-
- The Greenest People
-
zogger Thu, 08 May 2008 12:39:34 PDT Environment
-
National Geographic has a "greendex" now, ranking people by nation who is the greenest, by their criteria. Not surprisingly at all, more developed nations that use more energy and eat higher on the food chain rank lower than undeveloped or developing nations.
-
.."Rather than measuring each nation's environmental impact, the Greendex compares the behaviors of individuals in four key areas: housing, transportation, food, and consumer goods."
Ha! What this shows is simple, as people make more money, they want more stuff, and get less green. Sky is blue! What is a better criteria is, once people reach different thresholds of personal wealth, can they *maintain* a green lifestyle and resist the urge for more, more, MORE stuff? Or is it even possible, getting wealthier is defacto accumulating more recognized valuable stuff by society, and all of it has an impact. I posit it is near impossible to be both traditionally wealthy* and be green, and I don't care how many Teslas some hollywood dweeb buys, they still aren't "green". *wealthy for this is, all possible normal human necessities are covered, water, food, shelter, security, then you have a lot extra beyond that. Up to that point, poor or near to getting-by, after that point, you are accumulating wealth, ie, "wealthy".
-
-
-
-
-
- The Greenest People
-
disco Thu, 08 May 2008 13:09:36 PDT
-
I agree that your theory is the dominant factor, but it's not the complete story. Per capita Brazil is (significantly) richer than both China and India. I also think amongst the developed (i.e. wealthy) nations that the "richer is more wasteful" theory is less significant. I don't think you can blame the 5 points the US is behind the other rich nations soley on the US citizens being richer.
-
-
-
-
-
- The Greenest People
-
ndansmith Thu, 08 May 2008 13:42:25 PDT
-
I think "throw-away society" may be an apt term. I wonder how the US would have faired in the depression WW2 days. Still quite rich, but also quite thrifty.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- The Greenest People
-
Simon Sat, 10 May 2008 01:27:11 PDT
-
I think all such surveys have weak points.
For example it asks how regularly people consume beef. Whilst this would be the measure of a Green consumer, India is let off here, as it doesn't ask "Do you kill your dairy cattle promptly when they are unproductive?". The problem isn't eating beef, the problem is the resources consumed by the animals when they are alive (and the methane), not eating them after they have consumed those resources is even less green.
Transport results are also arguably biased against big countries, but the environment doesn't care why you release the CO2. But even then, anyone who has tried being a pedestrian in vast chunks of suburban America will realise America is car obsessed to a degree not seen anywhere else.
The survey does look at habits, and the details throw up some interesting insights. The British don't do bottled water, the Germans (an otherwise greener industrialised country), who have perfectly potable tap water, don't.
Depressingly it also reveals the British are more worried about immigration than the environment. Too many Daily Mail readers I fear, whilst the net immigration is about 200,000 a year, nearly all of those are going to London.
Overall I think the survey, if you look at the details, does a good job of highlighting consumer issues and variations. Although perhaps it would be better to portray the results of industrialised countries against each other only.
-
-
-
-
-
