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My sentiments exactly:

“We Don’t Need Supersonic Travel—in the ‘New Normal,’ We Should Slow Down.

“An interesting question: Did the pandemic break something in the heedless momentum of human acceleration, or are we really going straight back to normal?

“An interesting test case: United Airlines’ announcement that it will buy fifteen supersonic jets, which would allow business travellers to fly from San Francisco to Tokyo in six hours, and take ‘day trips’ across the Atlantic.

“Surely, we don’t want this. In part, of course, because it’s climate-insane. Supersonic planes, as Kate Aronoff points out, emit five to seven times as much carbon per passenger as conventional jetliners. … But let’s talk about something more than emissions. If we’re going to take climate change seriously, it also needs to come with a new aesthetic. We have to start seeing wind turbines on the horizon as kinetic art, not blight, for instance. And we might want to rethink what travel means, something that our pandemic year should have helped us with. At this point, it’s clear that you can conduct a lot of business remotely. What that means is not that we need to stay at home forever but that we could learn to travel slowly, precisely because we can e-mail the whole way, and because, as Zoom insists, people are learning to use it at thirty thousand feet. (Turn off your mic and use the chat, people.) Also, there’s Slack.”

Along similar lines, I am strongly of the opinion that we don’t need high-speed rail either. It’s already possible, by regular train, to get from DC to New York in four hours; and (to use an example from my own experience) from Orlando to Providence in 19. And a train trip across country is a multi-day adventure. All in all, when rest stops, refueling stops, and other necessities that add time to long-distance car trips are factored in, conventional train is really no slower than driving — but with the advantage of not having to keep your “eye on the road and hands upon the wheel”!

These words are from Bill McKibben, writing in “The Climate Crisis” email newsletter (June 9, 2021, edition). This is a free email newsletter of The New Yorker magazine, and I highly recommend it; go here to subscribe.

High-speed rail infrastructure doesn’t use existing tracks; it requires a whole nother set of tracks, stations, and associated infrastructure, and chews up land and resources accordingly. And for what? To get there a few hours or a couple days faster? And what would we do with that extra time — but try to cram in more travel, more consumption, and thus end up every bit as tired and stretched?

This ties in with Jevons paradox, the topic of my post yesterday. I believe that Jevons paradox holds true for time as well as energy. (Time is money is energy, after all.) J

Just as energy-efficiency increases in automobiles merely end up enabling people to drive farther, and energy-efficiency increases in refrigerators end up “empowering” people to buy bigger fridges (and even entire extra fridges), so time-efficiency increases just end up enabling us to cram more agenda items into our already-hectic lives. Aren’t we already on a fast enough treadmill? I sure think so.

Paradoxically, we can value our time more, and get more out of each moment, by choosing to put the brakes on our Anglo-industrialist-colonialist’s culture’s compulsion to “speed up more.”

I was immensely relieved to read that Vice President Kamala Harris is looking into the root causes of the spike in Mexico-to-U.S. border crossings, rather than focus on control and enforcement at the Mexican border itself as U.S. policy has typically done.

For all I know, past administrations have also tried to work on the root causes. But this is the first I’ve heard of it, and I always thought it was a no-brainer. In permaculture design, one of our basic tenets is to address problems as far “upstream” as possible. This approach is a lot more effective, and less costly, than a “downstream stopgap” approach.

Not that I think immigration is a “problem.” People coming in to a country bring new energy, new ideas. Personally, I think that easing restrictions on cross-border mobility could solve a lot of problems worldwide. But, when large numbers of people are feeling the need to flee their homelands, that’s an indicator of suffering and hardship. War; gang violence; droughts and other natural disasters are among the extreme circumstances that motivate people to risk their lives and, in many cases, endure separation from their families.

I read recently that some parts of Guatemala have had little or no rainfall for five years.

The decision to leave one’s homeland for another country in search of a better chance at life is not a decision people make lightly. I’ve always thought we had a moral obligation to try to ease hardships for people in our neighboring countries, as well as a pragmatic self-interest in doing so.

Someday, the shoe could be on the other foot. Right now, Oregon and parts of California are in extreme drought, and a water fight is heating up between farmers and the federal government. The farmers are only getting a tenth of their usual water allowance. They seem to feel that the government is deliberately cheating them out of water they paid for, but what it looks like to me is just one example of how we humans are actually running up against hard physical realities brought on by decades and decades of overtaxing our ecosystems.

Further Reading:

• “Harris Rebukes Criticism Over Lack of Border Visit” (Alexandra Jaffe, Associated Press; in Daytona Beach News-Journal, June 9, 2021). “As she closed out a two-day visit to Guatemala and Mexico aimed at strengthening diplomatic ties to help deal with migration to the U.S., Harris declared: ‘When I’m in Guatemala dealing with root causes, I think we should have a conversation about what’s going on in Guatemala.’ … the administration announced a range of agreements brokered between the two governments, including a $130 million commitment over the next three years from the U.S. to support labor reforms in Mexico and loans to bolster southern Mexico’s economy. The administration said the meeting produced an agreement to have an economic dialogue in September on trade, telecommunications and supply chains. And the two countries will also partner on human trafficking and economic programs addressing why people leave El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras for the U.S. … the Biden administration announced a number of new commitments to combat trafficking, smuggling, and corruption, as well as investments in economic development in the country.”

• “Support Immigrants Beyond Food” (Andrew Lee; Anti-Racism Daily newsletter — pure synchronicity that this got served up in my email inbox this week). “After a publicized wave of anti-Asian attacks, a catchy phrase popped up on protest signs and social media accounts: ‘Love us like you love our food.’ From anime to K-dramas and from sushi to sesame chicken, non-Asian Americans now love the culture from various East Asian countries – or what they imagine it to be, at least. Many of those who enjoy consuming East Asian food, music, and movies are nowhere to be found when Asian people’s lives are on the line. … LeRon Barton wrote, ‘I have come to the unfortunate realization that Blacks aren’t meant to be people, just vessels of entertainment in our society. We are looked at as hollow and only possessing culture that is meant to be enjoyed, eventually poached, and finally discarded.’ Similarly, immigrant communities and communities of color in general have been forced into precarious or menial jobs by racist and xenophobic attitudes and practices.”

• American OZ: An Astonishing Year in Traveling Carnivals at State Fairs and Fests –& Hitchhiking (book by Michael Sean Comerford). A rich and fascinating read. I’m including it here because of Michael’s touching descriptions of a Mexican carnival crew. It’s common for a bunch of men and sometimes women from a single Mexican village to leave their home for several months out of every year to work in traveling carnivals in the USA. Michael’s description of the simple, cozy, love-filled life back in the village (he visits them there, after carnival season is over) evokes a picture of a place and a way of life that’d be very hard to leave — except under the dire economic or political circumstances which in fact prompt them to seek work outside their homeland.

• Wikipedia article “Immigration“: “…research suggests that migration is beneficial both to the receiving and sending countries. Research, with few exceptions, finds that immigration on average has positive economic effects on the native population, but is mixed as to whether low-skilled immigration adversely affects low-skilled natives. Studies show that the elimination of barriers to migration would have profound effects on world GDP, with estimates of gains ranging between 67 and 147 percent. Development economists argue that reducing barriers to labor mobility between developing countries and developed countries would be one of the most efficient tools of poverty reduction. Positive net immigration can soften the demographic dilemma in the aging global North.”

• “Water Fight Brews Amid Oregon Drought” (Damon Arthur, Redding Record Searchlight USA TODAY NETWORK; in Daytona Beach News-Journal, June 6, 2021). “Federal regulators who shut off water to A Canal have said the decision was forced by extreme drought and the need to balance the water demands of farmers with threatened and endangered fish species in the Upper Klamath Lake and Klamath River … This year, as the drought has tightened its grip on the region, farmers were only allocated 33,000 acre-feet of water by the bureau. In a typical year, a full allocation would be about 350,000 acre-feet … ‘That’s why we’re pissed, because we own the water and it’s deeded to our land, and the federal government is stealing it. People don’t get that part of it,’ Nielsen said. Grant Knoll, who along with Nielsen purchased the lot next to the A Canal, said farmers have exhausted their legal efforts to get the water so they feel they are left with no other choice but to take it by force.”

Wait, what’s not to like about energy-efficiency? Environmental scientist Amory Lovins has referred to energy-efficiency as “the lunch you are paid to eat.” What could possibly be the downside?

Turns out that increases in energy-efficiency just end up enabling people to consume more. (For example, when cars get more miles per gallon, people end up driving more miles. And modern refrigerators are pretty inexpensive and super energy-efficient — but now lots of households have an extra fridge or freezer in the garage! And people have huge fridges nowadays.) This phenomenon is known as the Jevons paradox.

“Jevons paradox is named after William Jevons, who observed in the 19th century that an increase in the efficiency of using coal to produce energy tended to increase consumption, rather than reduce it. Why? Because, Jevons argued, the cheaper price of coal-produced energy encouraged people to find innovative new ways to consume energy.” (Rob McDonald writing in grist.org; see link below.)

Once I heard of Jevons paradox (which wasn’t that long ago — maybe a few months, or a year or so ago), it seemed like examples were all around me, and that I had actually been noticing it for decades. Where it stood out for me was in the realm of human energy: I noticed that with all of our high-efficiency automated appliances such as clothes washers, dryers, and dishwashers, many of my clients and other people I knew were still seeming to spend tons of time and personal energy dealing with laundry and dishes. Were the machines just prompting people do do a higher volume of laundry and dishes? I wondered. There was also the time and worry spent on dealing with these appliances when they malfunctioned. I didn’t have hard data, but I had a sneaking feeling that my volume of laundry and dishes stays lower because I know I’m going to hand-wash them.

A tangent, not exactly the same as Jevons paradox but seems related somehow: Does the availability of cheap air flights prompt us to travel long distances at the drop of a hat? Certainly. (In the paper the other day, one doting grandmother wrote about flying across the country to attend her grandchild’s “elementary school continuation” ceremony. Not even a graduation; just kids completing a year of school and preparing to move up to the next year.)

And along similar lines, mass-market availability of what used to be professional-grade lawn equipment has certainly made people more relentless about barbering their little piece of the earth.

In his excellent talk “How To Enjoy the End of the World,” Sid Smith observed that increases in energy-efficiency do not lead to reductions in consumption, unless those efficiency increases are accompanied by rationing. I gather he was referring to government-imposed rationing. But it occurred to me that the rationing would work just as well if it were voluntary. Self-imposed rationing. This has actually been my goal in promoting a “grassroots green mobilization.”

Governments imposed rationing during World War II. And also imposed a form of rationing during the Covid pandemic (via the stay-home orders). But, more recently, we saw the strict orders fall apart, as public opposition from the anti-mask, open-everything-up faction, including a number of state governments, made it politically impossible to enforce masking, social distance, and other measures in anything resembling a unified nationwide manner.

I doubt the situation would be any different if some government leaders were to try to implement energy rationing to try to put the brakes on the climate crisis and destruction of our planet’s life-support system.

For decades I yearned for the government to “save” us from eco crisis by instituting rationing, World War II style. Now I think that’s not likely to happen. As I’ve said before and will probably say again, I feel that bottom-up cultural shift is our best hope. The more of us get on board, the more corporations and governments will get on board with us.

Note, I’m not attempting to change the minds and hearts of relentlessly air-traveling grannies or mad lawn-barbers. That’d be a foolishly monumental task to try to take on. Rather, I’m out to reach the people who can feel we’ve got a problem, and who want to be part of a consumer downshift.

The most important thing to know about voluntary rationing is that thousands of people are already doing it, and they’re doing it in groups. Where I see it happening is mainly online communities, where people are exchanging tips and offering each other moral support. Facebook groups include Zero Waste, Zero Judgment (32k members at this writing); The Non-Consumer Advocate (82k). Although it is not as active as it once was, and membership in the Facebook group is modest at 153 people, I also have to give a plug for the Riot for Austerity Facebook group. (The Riot for Austerity movement is what inspired me to keep going with my low-footprint living experiment and turn ut into a lifestyle, eventually leading me to write my book and start this blog.)

Also, though we don’t immediately think of it as “rationing,” the 78k members of Pollinator Friendly Yards are certainly self-rationing their use of gasoline and other fossil fuels by rewilding their yards. And there are countless other groups of people who are committed to a conservation lifestyle; voluntary rationing at the grassroots level is a bigger phenomenon than meets the eye.

By the way, grassroots action definitely includes voting and social pressure (such as public shaming of bad behavior by government and corporations), in addition to voting with our feet and our wallets.

Further Exploration:

• “The Efficiency Dilemma: If our machines use less energy, will we just use them more?” (David Owen, The New Yorker, December 12, 2010). “Energy efficiency has been called ‘the fifth fuel’ (after coal, petroleum, nuclear power, and renewables); it is seen as a cost-free tool for accelerating the transition to a green-energy economy. … But the issue may be less straightforward than it seems. The thirty-five-year period during which new refrigerators have plunged in electricity use is also a period during which the global market for refrigeration has burgeoned and the world’s total energy consumption and carbon output, including the parts directly attributable to keeping things cold, have climbed. Similarly, the first fuel-economy regulations for U.S. cars—which were enacted in 1975, in response to the Arab oil embargo—were followed not by a steady decline in total U.S. motor-fuel consumption but by a long-term rise, as well as by increases in horsepower, curb weight, vehicle miles travelled (up a hundred per cent since 1980), and car ownership (America has about fifty million more registered vehicles than licensed drivers). A growing group of economists and others have argued that such correlations aren’t coincidental. Instead, they have said, efforts to improve energy efficiency can more than negate any environmental gains …”

• Jevons paradox: When doing more with less isn’t enough (Rob McDonald; grist.org). “Jevons paradox is named after William Jevons, who observed in the 19th century that an increase in the efficiency of using coal to produce energy tended to increase consumption, rather than reduce it. Why? Because, Jevons argued, the cheaper price of coal-produced energy encouraged people to find innovative new ways to consume energy.”

Rainwater harvesting notes, prompted by someone’s post in a Florida mainstream gardening group, about the current drought and people’s resulting increases in water bills:

• I use rainwater harvested from my roof. Carrying water all over the yard to the plants every day in this drought has been exhausting and time-consuming, but at least the water is free!!

• I always wonder why rainbarrels are not more popular here in Florida. I would never want to do without them! I have a total of about 500 gallons of rainwater harvesting/storage capacity.

• I have 500 gallons water capacity. I just put the barrels and troughs under my roof line to catch the water. A 1,000sf roof can catch up to about 600gal of water in a 1-inch rain event!!!! (Actually I think the rainwater calculator I use at a website called watercache.com says 623.)

I scoop the water out by hand with a watering can and carry it out to the plants all around the yard.

• Of course, watering needs will vary from place to place, and by type of garden.

The main focus of my yard is shade, water conservation, soil-building, native plants, and biodiversity. I have many wild edible so-called “weeds” growing in my yard that are highly nutritious and need much less water than cultivar veggies. I also have baby fruit trees and a few cultivated veggies.

My existing 500-gal setup easily gets me through the dry season in a normal year. As the “hot dry windows” in fall and spring seem to be expanding, it gets to be more of a challenge. I am planning on adding another 500 gal to my household system. It’s a work in progress.

Another key component of rainwater collection, besides barrels/troughs, is the ground itself. Minimize bare soil; turn the ground itself into a sponge by adding mulch, plants, etc.

Brad Lancaster, rainwater harvesting expert based in Tucson AZ, has great videos and I recommend his book “Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands” to everyone in Florida [and everywhere else, for those of you outside Florida who are reading this], since our landscaping and development practices are basically turning Florida into a desert.

Also – not all gardens are created equal. In Florida, the most successful food-gardeners I know are growing food in dappled shade — creating multi-story food forests, rather than unshaded, rectangular plots with veggies in rows. The latter require huge amounts of water and still struggle in the Florida sun.

Suggestion for anyone interested in learning more: check out permaculture / food forests.

Tucson AZ gets 11 inches of rain a year. In most of Florida we historically get over 45. I highly recommend Brad’s book to everyone. And highly recommend Brad’s video “Planting the Rain to Grow Abundance.” This 18-minute video is a great investment of any gardener/homesteader/concerned environmentalist’s time today. He has numerous other videos as well.

Another super resource: Watercache rainwater harvesting calculator

• (In response to someone who said her county is on a total ban, and they can’t even water one day a week): Where I live, there are certain exemptions from the watering ban, such as watering a food-garden or watering by hand (with hose, or watering-can).

Since I furthermore water with rainwater (that I caught off my roof during rainy times), I am not subject to the watering ban and am able to water daily. I water different plants in the yard in rotation. My kumquat tree and lemon tree each got the big 2-gallon watering can yesterday. This morning I watered the plumeria which provides dappled shade for Okinawa spinach and other summer greens (and also provides beauty for the neighbors and people who walk by).

I have been using 15 to 20 gallons of water each day, in rotation, on the plants in my yard to try to patch them through this drought. As the “dry window” times in fall and spring seem to be getting longer each year, I have started dreading what a rainless June might look like in Florida; I hope we don’t have to find out. (Actually we have had a total of almost an inch so far this month, but we are very far behind our normal for the year, as is most of the rest of the state from what I hear.)

A friend and fellow permie posted on his Facebook page that a local restaurant he knows is looking to hire someone to wash dishes. Quoting from his post:

DISHWASHERS NEED A LIVING WAGE AS MOM AND POP DINERS STRUGGLE TO MAKE ENDS MEET. … Would you take a part time position (@25hr/wk) in a lighthearted friendly atmosphere where you were treated as family for (what is now considered) a meager $10/hr?

Our own favorite micro-eatery … is scratching by in its second year, hammered by the “shut-down” and resultant lost revenues; the proprietors of the (now) three person operation struggle to find a fourth “family” member to sanitize the dishes and flatware.

… This truly IS more like an arranged adoption that I am trying to facilitate. It really is more of a lifestyle and community choice than a job… but there’s about $250 a week in it …

Most people responding to the post essentially said it’s not viable; that $10 an hour is not a living wage. While I fully acknowledge that it’s not possible to live a “typical” USAmerican (living alone; owning a car; etc. etc. etc.) lifestyle on $250 a week, I responded to his post with a somewhat different take on the matter:

Great question … and I will offer a viewpoint from my own experience.

$1,000 a month would be more money than I have consistently made for the whole 11 years I have lived in Florida. And 25 hours a week offers plenty of off time for studying, enjoying family, getting out in nature, etc.

Of course, living alone in a house or apartment would not be an option on such income. A person would need apartment-mates or housemates — which is how I have always managed. And actually, how i prefer to live even if i were a millionaire.

I would not try to own a car on such an income. (Then again I don’t prefer owning a car, even if i were a millionaire.) Instead I would live walking/biking/bus distance to work. Which is in fact what I have always done.

If the job comes with housing (such as a small room in a rooming house etc), that’d be a huge bonus!!

Im not actually looking for a job (have enough between housecleaning gigs, landscaping, speaking gigs, and the modest sales of my book; as well as having housemates to share house expenses). But, if I were looking for work, this would actually sound pretty appealing to me! The “family” aspect and small-business aspect would be a key part of the appeal for me.

Permaculture design principles offer us ways to reduce our need to earn; constructively disengage from consumer society; forge a sweeter greener saner path. This job might not be for everyone but I can see it being an appealing option in many ways.

I would add to my above thoughts, that other than my writing and speaking/consulting work, I have always tended to enjoy work that left my mind free. Pedicabbing, sewing, clearing brush, digging ponds, whatever.

I fully agree that ever-widening income disparities are creating deadly problems in this country and in the world. And, government and corporations need to be part of the solution — if we want to be able to call ourselves a civilized society.

That said, my comment was meant to illustrate that there’s a lot we individuals in the lower-income ranges can do to have a good quality of life even if we don’t earn much money. No need to wait on government or corporations to fix things — and in fact, we can’t afford to wait for them.

Some people assume that getting around by bike, living car-free or car-lite, is too hard.
But it’s actually pretty easy and indeed very rewarding!

To me, owning a car is a huge hassle. Parking, gas, taxes, insurance, repairs and maintenance. According to recent estimates, the annual expense of car ownership in the USA is over $9,000. Ugh!

In the USA, car ownership is not only typically seen as necessary; it’s even viewed as a status symbol; a step up. I especially hate to see people in the lower income range “move up” to owning a car. To me, being able to get around mainly by walking and bicycling is a real move up: a boost in quality of life.

I used to assume that getting around by bike was impossible in cold climates, til I met people who bicycle-commuted to work or school even while living in places like Wyoming and Alaska. In Florida and other warm places, it’s perfectly do-able once you get used to the fact that the human body perspires. (That’s actually a feature, not a bug, of our bodies!)

The most irksome aspect of being car-free, in my experience, is that people somehow think my transportation mode is “less than” their wonderful expensive car. Or they assume I would not be able to get to this or that place, and that I would need a ride. Nope! With the help of buses for longer trips, and Uber or taxis for sudden rough weather, and the occasional rental car or box truck for long trips or heavy hauls, I can get anywhere I really want to. If I don’t get there, it’s because I decided not to spend the time and energy to get there.

And, I can transport pretty much anything I need. (On that note, I’m a huge fan of paying people to deliver large items to me.)

Interested in trying cycling as a mode of transport? In this series of 10 short videos, Daytona Beach area cycling activist Jason Aufdenberg offers some great practical tips to get you started and keep you rolling. Jason covers everything from traffic safety and comfortable clothing, to how to comfortably transport groceries. Thanks to Florida Bicycle Association for this series.

#ActiveTransportation #HumanPoweredTransportation #TransportationFreedom

An acquaintance of mine was talking about a guy she knew who had taken a personal-growth course. I seem to recall she was talking about Landmark (a very popular course that many of my friends have taken and benefited from), but actually it doesn’t matter which course it was, because what I’m about to say applies universally to personal growth, spiritual growth, religion, self-improvement paths, books and coursework of all kinds.

“It [the course] must not have worked,” she said, “because he ended up getting a divorce.”

This illustrates a common misconception about personal-growth work: that if a person’s life is anything less than perfect, then they must not be “doing it right,” or the “program isn’t effective.”

First of all, self-evolvement is not some kind of “Get Out of Jail Free” card. “Yippee, I am ENLIGHTENED and I will never have to struggle or suffer again!” Um, yeah — No. This is the same line of reasoning used by people who say things like, “She must not have been a good Christian, because God didn’t answer our prayers to cure her cancer.” (Yes, I actually DID hear of someone saying this, I am not making this up.)

Personal/spiritual growth is about learning how to take responsibility for your life, get comfortable in your own skin, enjoy the everyday moments as well as the “special” ones, become the most authentic possible version of yourself, make the difference you want to make in the world, be in service. It is NOT about suddenly having a perfect life. Whatever “perfect” is — which brings me to my second point.

Second of all: What seems like a bad thing to an outside observer, could be the best thing for the person him/herself. Take the example of the divorce mentioned earlier. Maybe it was time for that relationship to end! Maybe it was a really valuable part of that person’s journey. Maybe maybe maybe … ! We are not in a position to assess the efficacy of a person’s self-evolvement path by observing their external circumstances through our own personal filters.

Oh, and speaking of filters, sometimes our own personal filters are actually themselves a problem, and therefore a worthwhile target for personal-growth work. One woman I met as a fellow participant at a self-improvement course was obsessed with her weight. She was (maybe) carrying a couple of extra pounds. She probably noticed those extra pounds more than anyone else. In fact, maybe she wasn’t really even carrying any extra pounds at all! But she was very focused on her weight. (Something I can relate to, as one who for some years struggled with an eating disorder.)

She looked around the room and said, “If this program works, then why are so many people here overweight?” I was stunned because I just didn’t have that filter (anymore); I just saw a bunch of people who looked healthy, enthusiastic, and ALIVE. And I figured that if any of them had weight goals or other physical-body goals, they were surely working toward them and would be able to achieve them.

Ditto for a question I heard from someone who had a lot of worry around money: “If this program works, why doesn’t everyone in the room have a million dollars?” Well for one thing, maybe, strange as it may sound, not everyone WANTS a million dollars. Or maybe they are working on other things first, things that have higher priority for them. Things no amount of money can buy. Healing old family upsets, for instance. Or empowering their kids to live fully. (Anyway, how do you look around a room and know who has a million dollars and who doesn’t? Is there a special forehead tattoo or something?)

All of which is to say: No matter what world-self goals you are working on as you seek to grow in mind and spirit … Keep Evolving and Carry On, everyone! Enjoy your life and respect your own journey, suffering and all. And don’t let anyone discourage you from your self-evolvement path.