The Growing Change

Printing the Soulution

How sustainabilty and new energy is altering our day to day lives

By Camille Hawthorne

Clean energy is replacing fossil fuels rapidly, with the popularization of electric cars and solar panels. “by the time you’re 30, you’ll hopefully be in the age where clean energy is more common,” said Robert Kaufmann, a professor at Boston University. “I mean, the idea is, we’ve gotta do it.” He agrees that going green in both the industry and everyday life is both healthy for both the individual and the world.

In the path towards sustainability and the consciousness that comes with it, there can be worry about major changes in one’s lifestyle. “I’m not a vegan, or vegetarian, but I’ve started eating less meat and that’s a big thing to do. I don’t know if you can tell, but I bike to and from work, it’s ten miles each way, good exercise.” Kaufmann said.

Even if biking isnt easy to do or is possible for someones schedule, theres still other options, whether it be through reusing plastic containers, eating less meat, or buying groceries that are in season. “There’s lots of things you can do in your daily life to kinda move things along in the right direction, minimize your impact,” he said.

Besides food, there’s an economical advantage about using solar energy or solar panels (PV). “It’s generally cheaper, I mean last summer when everybody was paying four, five dollars a gallon, I mean my electric bill, compared, was like 1.50 a gallon…and there is some indication that climate change can affect housing prices,” said Kaufmann.

With commonality in ideals and market demand, becoming more sustainable is more beneficial for people and the planet is starting to be a guiding factor among consumers and the economy as well. A survey done by the Pew Research Center displays how a majority of adults favor the US becoming carbon neutral by 2050. Solar energy is now the cheapest kind to ascertain, and in the US a recent law passed called the Inflation Reduction act gives incentives to go green with solar. “It just requires us to make the move, stick your neck out, be bold. At some point, we just need to do this.” said Matt Haefenraefer, a CEO of a sustainably-focused consulting firm, Process First.

The social incentive comes into play when this happens, with something called the neighborhood effect. “you’re living in a neighborhood, and your neighbor puts up a PV panel, and then you do it, and it becomes more and more visible in the neighborhood,’’ Kaufmann said. “And the same is true with electric cars, people start seeing them, start thinking about them, and talk to people about them.I have a chevy bolt and only have good things to say, and as far as i’m concerned, i’m never going back to an internal combustion car. So, when people talk to me and hear that I like it, that encourages them along with lower prices.” said Kaufmann.

People are adopting these changes in their way of life, whether it’s through talking to others on break at work or sharing through social media. “And, i’ve noticed my peers are more and more working towards clean energy and renewals, and as they come into higher up positions, you see the shift start to happen.” says Haffenraefer. “With people tweeting or talking about how they like PV, it makes other people think, “oh, that seems pretty cool, maybe i’ll check it out.” said Kaufmann.

As people’s diets and habits get greener, so do different industries, and in turn, so does the world. People have a form of control over the market, and in order to profit, companies still have to appear as the best choice to buy from. This isn’t to say that climate change and the work towards sustainability is something that the consumer is responsible for. “Something that happens in the world is companies build campaigns to put the blame on the individual, and it deflects from, what’s the real source of the problem is.” said Haffenraefer. These things will still affect everyone in the future, learning and being more conscious about it, and what people do to help is going to drive our industry forward towards practicing the same thing.

“I mean it affects our life on a day to day basis, this is not some theoretical situation for us, this is what life is going to look like for them, for the future.” Kaufmann said. The possibilities and potential of this newfound tech won’t just help an individual, it could help aid in that change that we need. The growing possibilities are endless.