Obama, Xi Jinping Climate Deal - Happily, We Can Do Better

As much as it's great to see China and the United States finally talking about climate, we have to ask the bigger question: "are the numbers truly meaningful?"

Well, I've been digging into some numbers and, to be blunt, I believe the answer is "no".

In Wednesday's CO2 agreement, President Obama pledged to reduce carbon emissions by "as much as 28%" from 2005 levels by the year 2025.  Xi Jinping pledged to peak China's carbon dioxide emissions in 2030.  Currently the US produces 16% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions and is gradually improving on this number, at least partly due to the natural gas now available through new "fracking" techniques (another thorny issue).  China produces 26% of the world's carbon emissions, and its CO2 output is growing exponentially [reference].

The world is currently absorbing only about half of the CO2 that humans produce.  By 2030, if this deal goes as planned, China's CO2 output could be four, eight or even sixteen times what it is today.

To meet this dubious goal, China will build hundreds, if not thousands, of nuclear power plants, as well as other "clean energy" production facilities, ostensibly by damming rivers and clearing forests for massive solar arrays.

Why do they need this much more energy?  So they can make more shoddy clothing, toys and disposable junk?

The upshot is that top-down solutions are not working.  If this is the best that the “top” has to offer, we must stop looking to the “top” for solutions.  What is needed, instead, is a bottom up change in priorities. 

So, let’s start from the bottom, with one of the most carbon & energy-intensive industries: big agriculture and remote food production.

Right now, less than 2% of the US population is involved in agricultural production.  In effect, that leaves 98% of Americans “food-insecure”.  The food we eat is grown by strangers on giant, distant farms, lacks nutritional value, and carries a huge carbon (and environmental) footprint.  While 98% of Americans toil at non-agricultural jobs, 70% are unhappy at work.  Many feel their jobs are pointless and their careers unstable, and many are concerned about the high cost of putting healthful food on the table. 

To sum it up: we work at disappointing jobs in pursuit of security that our leaders are unwilling or unable to provide.

Now for the kicker: according to recent studies, jobs in “agriculture, forestry and fishing” are some of the most rewarding professions.  They are dangerous, dirty, and often unprofitable, yet workers in these jobs are some of the happiest of all. 

Weird.  Maybe 98% of us are missing the boat.

Here is an equation that can change the world: Happiness + food security + community = wealth.

Where do we find happiness, food security and community? How about “agriculture, forestry and fishing” for a start?

• Local and back-yard agriculture produces healthier, potentially carbon-neutral, food.
• Forests cool the local environment, produce food and timber, absorb CO2, and increase wildlife.
• Fishing requires clean water and careful management.  Small agriculture and forestry can improve water quality, whereas big agriculture contributes heavily to water pollution.

Farming, forestry and fishing are both rewarding and cost-effective.  They are also mostly apolitical, non-partisan and largely uncontroversial.  Republicans and Democrats alike enjoy walking in the forest, eating fresh food and fishing in clean streams.  So do the Chinese, for that matter.

These pursuits bring people together over cooperative, satisfying work.  They give us purpose.

As individuals and communities, we must lead by example.  When we plant vegetable gardens and forests for ourselves and each other, we demonstrate how rewarding, and secure, life can be.  And we must publicize these successes -- at home and in China.  Every community that comes together over food, forestry and fishing can serve as an example to the next.  We must form connections and friendships across cultural boundaries.  Only by spreading our success can we hope to succeed on a global scale.

While communities become more food-secure, other sustainability issues must be addressed.  We must stop buying junk from far away, and start buying quality products from each other.  It’s all part of the same package.  So, while our leaders bicker over carbon emissions, we can be taking productive steps toward a happier, more sustainable future, from the bottom up. 

In the end, keeping the world inhabitable is everybody’s business.  Take a small step today, then take another step tomorrow.  Share your successes.  Before you know it, you'll be part of the solution.