Thread by @ProfColinDavis

Here’s a little thought experiment you might like to try... [thread]

Suppose that there’s a disruption to air travel. Let’s not concern ourselves with the cause -- maybe it’s a volcano that erupted, or some coordinated drone activity, or maybe the government finally decides to get serious about avoiding climate breakdown.

At first, you think it’s going to be only a brief disruption. But it drags on, and after a while you realise that you’re not going to be able to fly for the rest of the year.

This is inconvenient. You had plans to fly somewhere sunny for your holidays. Maybe there was a conference you planned to go to. And perhaps you’re thinking you won’t be able to see family that live abroad.

Take a while to consider this, as if it’s really happened. Ask yourself, “How would I cope?”

Go on, take a moment to really imagine yourself in this scenario.

“Maybe I don’t need to go to that conference?”, you might say. “It would save a lot of time and hassle if I didn’t”.

“Maybe I can still go on that holiday, but take the scenic route, by train? Or maybe I should explore some of those places closer to home that I’ve never seen?”

“I could have a video chat with my folks right now. And when I need to see them in person, I can still get there -- it’ll just take a bit longer. I’ll be able to read that novel that’s been sitting on my shelf for the last year”.

Your responses might differ a bit. But you could cope.

Now consider this. Your greatest personal contribution to global warming is likely to be from aviation emissions. So, in this thought experiment you just tried, there was a big positive.

Without meaning to, perhaps, you did the best thing you can to reduce the harmful effects of climate breakdown. (Yes, you could go vegan too -- please do!)

What if you consciously chose not to fly? No one made you. There weren’t any drones or volcanoes that forced your hand. You simply wanted to make a positive contribution to the world, and you decided that you could cope without flying for a while.

Why not try it? Plenty of people already are. Tens of thousands of Swedes have pledged not to fly in 2019. You could do the same.

Thanks for reading this far! I hope you’ll consider making a #NewYearsResolution to go #FlightFree2019 ipetitions.com/petition/nofly… @FlightFree2019 [end of thread]