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A common criticism in the climate debate is to focus too much on individual options rather than political regulation. But that’s a false contradiction, says Steve Westlake, a doctoral student in psychology at Cardiff University. System changes and individual choices affect and reinforce each other.
– When people change, they also demand change from their leaders, says Westlake.
He can’t comment specifically on recycling, but he thinks it’s probably possible to connect with his research on how people who stop flying for weather reasons affect the people around them. Much, it turns out.
– Of course, it evokes many types of reactions, but when others do something that is difficult, it draws our attention. If someone says they have stopped flying, got rid of their car, or stopped eating meat, we are not sure we will follow them, but we wonder why they do so and we start to think about our own behavior, says Westlake, noting that the rules are incredibly powerful.
Photo: Steve Westlake
If the norm changes From the fact that it is “normal” to change phones every two years to the fact that it is obvious to repair it, we are more likely to do the same.
People in the public sector play a particularly important role in changing behaviors, because we tend to admire them, says Westlake. At the same time, it is a difficult balancing act for politicians. Taking a clear stance on the climate issue carries the risk of being portrayed as extreme and crazy.
– But if people, especially in a larger group, act on their own, they can change what is considered normal for a politician, what laws are perceived as acceptable, and show what direction society tolerates.
A recent example is Britain at the start of the crown crisis, when some felt the government was too slow to take action to stop the spread.
– People voluntarily entered a confinement, stopped traveling and socializing, before the government said we had to. In this way, the people led the government, or at least allowed them to shut us down.
– The same happens with climate change. If people show that they are willing to let their lives suffer, it can really make a difference.
