Feeling Guilty About Climate Change? Hank Green is Here to Help | Hot Mess 🌎

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Climate guilt is a common feeling. We’ve all benefited from fossil fuels, and most of the stuff we do in life depends on them. But we also know that we can’t continue down this path if we want to live in a stable world. So how do we overcome this challenge? How do we make a change? We talked to Hank Green to get his thoughts.
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References:
Obradovich, N., & Guenther, S. M. (2016). Collective responsibility amplifies mitigation behaviors. Climatic change, 137(1-2), 307-319.
Bain, P. G., Hornsey, M. J., Bongiorno, R., & Jeffries, C. (2012). Promoting pro-environmental action in climate change deniers. Nature Climate Change, 2(8), 600.
The Cultural Cognition Project: www.culturalcognition.net/
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Host: Joe Hanson
Guest: Hank Green
Writers: Joe Hanson Ph.D. and Hank Green
Creative Director: David Schulte
Executive Producer: Amanda Fox
Producer: Stephanie Noone
Editor/Animator: Sara Roma
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Produced by PBS Digital Studios
Theme Music: Eric Friend/Optical Audio
Music: APM

[@HotMessPBS]

Fossil fuels are the primary cause of human climate change and we can’t keep using them like we do. But they also helped build the awesome world we live in and all our nice stuff. It’s a complicated place to be, so we talked to Hank Green about it, because he’s good at thinking about complex things. What do you think?

[@thebigpicture2032]

Transition to greener energy while maintaining our standard of living. Legislation helps with this. For example, Obama set increasing mileage standards for new vehicles. This was excellent for consumers and forced companies to innovate, also a good thing. Less fossil fuels used per mile driven ultimately leading to mostly electric. Nobody suffers. Yes, I know Trump threw them out but I was just using this as an example. What I’d really like to see is regulation regarding a reduction in plastic packaging. It would save companies money and less floating in the oceans and entering our food chain. So many products are currently over packaged. It’s an easy fix, just simple legislation and again, nobody suffers.

[@cryptkeeper08]

I don't think its as complicated as people make it out to be, yes there is nuance in all things nothing is objectively completely positive or negative. But it's not complicated, we used and overused resources and now need to change. Most people are not bad, but I do think businesses like Exxon for 40 years willfully hid the truth and obfuscated it were and are a net negative to the world.

[@scotthenrie5674]

@@thebigpicture2032 enjoy how much electricity will cost with green energy. Technology hasn't advanced enough to have it affordable.

[@scotthenrie5674]

@Phillip Kirkwood yay! Someone else that knows about China and India! They're also never talking about how the rainforests are being clear cut for farms. Let's face the fact, they thrive on controversial topics; however, if you say anything that doesn't support the allegedly accepted ideas KZbin won't allow ads to be shown on the video. Like this one that dares to question how well do scientists actually know about climate change. At 13;22 in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqWlqXyVrsmVl5Y Climate scientist Dr. Judith Curry from the Georgia Institute of Technology said in a 2015 US Senate testimony that “there is enormous pressure for climate scientists to conform to the so-called consensus. This pressure not only comes from politicians, but from federal funding agencies, universities and professional societies.” I found a copy of that as a PDF with a Google search, and it's real. BTW, always do a search with several different search engines, because Google officially said that they'll make it harder or impossible to find a specific website.

[@TheJohdu]

Joe and Hank, that for me personally is by far the most important video you've done. thank you!

[@PhilosophyTube]

This was really good, thank you!

[@Emily-ce7hd]

@Alex shoe lol you were a couple months ahead of your time!

[@FutureNow]

Couldn't see the "feat. Hank Green" part of the title in my subscription feed for this video, so I was staring at the thumbnail intently like "OK, it's definitely not just Joe Hanson *looking* like Hank here ... that's freakin' him, right?!"

[@CerseiDM]

@@loy7163 oh thank you i'm not the only one! XD

[@Pcarnevaaa]

They look the same xd

[@robinchesterfield42]

For the LONGEST time I thought "It's Okay to Be Smart" and "Sci-Show" (and its spin-off channels) were at least partially hosted by the same person, and I was like "DAMN, HOW DOES HE HAVE TIME TO _EAT_?!" XD When seen side by side they obviously have different facial structures, BUT...they ARE both tall blonde glasses-wearing science guys. :P

[@cromwellcruz]

It's nice to see this channel also takes into account the psychological dilemma associated with environmentalism. Kudos.

[@cymonearcher4882]

I feel bad everytime I throw away plastic or glass because in my country we do not have recycling plants, and yes, while I do reuse reduce recycle, I cannot keep every bit of plastic I've ever used (or else I'd be a hoarder). I feel bad for our oceans, and it pains me more cuz I live on an island.

[@alessiodebonis2710]

maybe this will help you... kzbin.info/www/bejne/pneaY6OuZ7dmfsk

[@dimyttt1780]

@Cymone Archer You are Not alone! I have recently started my battle on plastic , it's just a thoght challenge. I kinda feel overwhelmed when i get into a supermarket and all i see is plastic everywhere. I know we will be able to reduce consumption very soon. I always try to find new product packagings ! A New compostable material for packaging is spreading all over the market in my country. I just want to accelerate this process by buying eco friendly products :)

[@scotthenrie5674]

You should contact 4ocean.com to get help with organizing a project to cleanup the plastic in the ocean, ask them for details about providing money for traveling expenses and what you can do with the plastics. About glass, they're starting to use it broken up as a replacement for sand used in concrete, IDK where they're doing that. We can't use the sand from the oceans and beaches because it's been weathered so much that there aren't any sharp angles on its surface for the cement to grasp onto.

[@scotthenrie5674]

@@dimyttt1780 I heard that because they don't have a good waste management system in India they burn their plastics. Which makes the air pollution there worse! www.statista.com/chart/13575/deaths-from-air-pollution-worldwide/

[@Stwinge44]

Scott Henrie please don’t promote that. There are many different types of plastic, some containing chlorine and usually some type of stabiliser chemicals. These can produce toxic fumes, which is what sometimes happens when “recycled” materials are irresponsibly sent to other countries

[@RohitSharmaDECIPHERETERNITY]

Great video: Basically do the best you can as per your resources. Do a bit more. But don't judge others or compare with others. That's what we all need to do.

[@potatorodka2795]

Nah, it's saying direct action is better than individual choices. It literally says the money you spend individually would be better spent lobbying.

[@derfred527]

I needed this.. been feeling depressed for some time now because of the state of this world.

[@jhunt5578]

Changed my diet, switched to a renewable energy provider, pay a volunteer carbon tax. The anxiety is gone, but now I'm just frustrated with my government for keeping the status quo.

[@rantan1618]

lol..you are MADE OF CARBON why would you pay so someone else can pollute? why not just dont pollute? "carbon taxes" are a scam.

[@jhunt5578]

@@rantan1618 1. What on earth has me being a carbon based lifeform got to do with the fact that co2 is GHG that in large amounts causes climate change? 2. I'm not paying so someone else can pollute, it's literally the exact opposite, I'm paying to have all the units of GHG I make annually sequestered. 3. I cannot avoid pollution altogether, we use fossil fuels to make almost everything we use, I'd have to become a hunter-gatherer living in the jungle to avoid any pollution. 4. Provide evidence that carbon taxes are a scam.

[@oscarpelayogonzalez2709]

That's why there are movements like this: rebellion.earth/

[@davew2040x]

@@rantan1618You have a wildly misguided understanding of the situation if you think the concept of carbon-based life has anything to do with it.

[@fixafix69]

​@@rantan1618are you still mentally ill 5 years later or did some sense come into you?

[@aesthetewithoutacause3981]

Thank you so much for making this. I've been feeling very guilty about doing things that use fossil fuels that I don't need to do such as running my small business selling cards. The materials I buy are packaged in plastic, imported from China and most likely not sustainably sourced. Then I have to ship some orders which adds carbon emissions. Not to mention the guilt I feel for taking planes to go on holiday, or having a long hot shower occasionally. I honestly don't know what to do. My actions aren't aligned with my beliefs, and it's taking a toll on me. I refuse to give up on my beliefs concerning climate change because I know they are backed by science and ultimately reality. But how can I change my actions without having to give up everything I've grown to take for granted? Should I? I'm pretty stuck...

[@intreoo]

This is me right now. I do wish that our government in the US would put effort into making the public aware of sustainable living and not consumerist living, but overall, the public needs to be more aware of climate change in order to feel like a society that is progressing towards the right thing.

[@needpit1]

"Don't feel shame, feel powerful"

[@dragonskunkstudio7582]

I'll change my feels... What? While I'm pumping gas in my car? It's meaningless gibberish.

[@SarahKarver]

This articulated so much of what I’ve been thinking lately! Thank you!

[@CraftyF0X]

Yea but the emotional approach like hating or liking something inanimate and objective is the wrong approach. You only get to be conflicted if you think in this binary mode, the way to avoid that is to adopt a world view where you accept that most things can interact with you in many different positive or negative way and the evaluation of such results are actually up to you. For me it was never a problem to accept fossil fuels for what they are, an important stepping stone in the history of human progress with the added caveat that they seems to overstayed their wellcome. They are neither good nor bad and so any emotion wasted on them is just unecessary anthropomorphisation.

[@scotthenrie5674]

That's what the politicians and media want you to feel like. John Cook, the lead author behind the study claiming that 97% of climate scientists agree (it's actually 32.4%) said “the motivation for the analysis was the importance of scientific consensus in shaping public opinion, and therefore policy.” This link will start playing where it covers that, but please watch all of it because he's saying that we don't know. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqWlqXyVrsmVl5Y To prove he said that, here's a search that'll only find that exact sentence. www.google.com/search?q=%22the+motivation+for+the+analysis+was+the+importance+of+scientific+consensus+in+shaping+public+opinion+and+therefore+policy%22

[@hedf]

I worked at a blast furnace. I spent my day producing co2, with a little byproduct of slug and iron. I feel guilt of doing that just to pay my mortgage. 1 ton of liquid pigiron burns 1.6 tons of iron ore. 0.5 ton of carbon. The furnace makes 6 tons a minute. Burning through 3 tons of carbon every minute in just 1 blast furnace. 4.5 percent of the iron is filled with carbon, burned out of it with oxygen at a steel plant. All carbon ends in the atmosphere. Ive litterly seen mountains of coal come and go. And all of it is ended as co2. Its so sick. Ideas of reusing the gas, the carbon to withdraw the oxigen of the ore is ridiculed. Above 900 degrees celsius co2 can not exist if there is enough carbon it falls apart in co (boudoire reaction), wich reduces the oxigen in the iron ore

[@scotthenrie5674]

@North Peak people have asked me _“how brainwashed are you?”_ only because *I dare to question the topic.* So I tell them exactly what the definition of brainwashing is. “2. any method of controlled systematic indoctrination, *especially one based on repetition or confusion:* _brainwashing by TV commercials.”_ www.dictionary.com/browse/brainwashing

[@hedf]

@North Peak you have absolutely no idea how the carbon cycle works, in the same period we build and work/ blow-in the blast furnace we should have made tech to get the co2 out of the air. Just as nature has done evolving fauna and flora together. We forgot because of money. Co2 is the main greenhouse gas of earth. H2o depends on how warm it is (thus the amount of co2) Yes plants like co2. And animals like oxigen. Thats why they help eachother. But because we forget the tech to get it out of the air co2 levels are rising. And duribg summer just a tiny bit gets locked in trees and green. Then fall comes. And co2 rises further because we dont stop adding. Immagine 2 aquariums on top of each other filled with 200 liters of water both. Each hour all the water gets pumped around. So 200 from 1 aquarium to the other, and vise versa. Perfectly in balance. Thats how the natural carbon cycle works. Now add a hose and add 3 liters an hour. That is what our fossil fuels do. It starts with an unsignificant rise but slowly when time builds on we neef bigger aquariums. Because it adds. That is why we increased atmospheric carbon fron 280 ppm to 415 ppm. Thats why the oceans have risen. Islands dissapeared. Floods droughts and storms increased in intensity, and the conveyor belt of the ocean currents is slowing down (tons of fresh water dilute the heavy seawaters and the strenght of the falls around the arctic decreases. Just because we dont want to invest in real technology

[@scotthenrie5674]

@@GrandeHq prevent the amazon rainforest from being cut down. If left intact a single hectare of the Amazon rainforest could produce revenue of up to $6,800 a year if it's sustainably harvested for the fruit and timber. Compared to only $1000 per hectare if it's cleared for commercial timber. And only $148 if the land is cleared for cattle pastures. Which is what 90% of the forest is being cleared for. "The 10 Largest Forests on Earth" kzbin.info/www/bejne/hqjapoymatuJhqs

[@scotthenrie5674]

@@GrandeHq they shouldn't be doing what they are doing. Look at how many trees have been cut down as the population of the USA increased.

[@scotthenrie5674]

@@GrandeHq I'm talking about how we look at history to avoid repeating mistakes.

[@roy4173]

The problem just feels too big for me sometimes. A couple days ago, I listened to a news podcast about Kenya potentially beginning a large series of coal power plants when they already didn't need them and were actually planning to jump into renewable energy. I dug further to find out the entire endeavor was invested by China. And China is not just trying to get coal power into Kenya, but they're trying to start new coal power plants all around the world. ...what do you do with that? What CAN you do with that? I'm not Chinese. I'm not a Chinese citizen. And it wouldn't matter anyway because China isn't run by democracy. If their government wants to build a thousand coal power plants, nobody can stop them. Even if we could change the direction the US is taking, would that be enough to counteract what China is trying to do?

[@secondnuts]

Due to the one of the founding scientists from scientists for future the chineese government also invests heavily into solar power and electric car developement. I believe that soon the regenerative energies will be much cheaper than coal. I will use my power to get some solar power on to my roof.

[@887frodo]

I understand the feeling, but I know first-hand the effect this country (US) and all other major nations have in major international decisions. By electing representatives that share our values towards the environment, we solidify the position of our country in the global debate much like Germany and many other European democracies lead the movement today! But we need to change our own culture first and we need to do it fast, so we move on from discussing whether climate change is real and tackle how exactly we can put a stop to it. P.S: This reminded me of a part in Hilary Clinton's memoir where she describes a hilarious clash between the Obama administration and the Chinese government in Copenhagen. I suggest you read it, it illustrates to what extent each side of the aisle is willing to pull its weight and why we need people in government with a strong (and obviously positive) stance on environmental issues.

[@tammysilverwolf1085]

There's a lot of geopolitics involved there-- the West hasn't done much to invest into nations like Africa because it's confident in its ability to get things done in the UN and places like this, while China (and Russia to an extent) are still hungry for getting their interests looked after. Investing in upcoming nations with a seat on the UN (or just as a future trading partner) is valuable to those nations and less (perceived) value to established powers. One of the 'tricks' to these kinds of things is to make the economics heavily favor the 'best path' forward-- reduce the cost, increase the efficiency and you're going to get those renewable energy sources out faster. Then you have to worry about batteries and other things (which are a huge engineering problem of their own) and then you see why coal is attractive to impoverished (and/or corrupt) countries. How do we deal with it as a random citizen? That's a tough one... But it can be things like lobbying, getting people involved and interested, and not letting people fall into the 'it's too big' methodology of thinking. It's a big problem, and it's also going to pushed back against by those with an interest in the status quo. But there are smart folks in smart companies (large and small) that're working on the future energies and storage methods that can bring about that change. I don't have an answer, I'm some rando on the internet, but educating yourself on what's being developed and how it can apply to/be made cheaper by manufacturing and distribution and spreading that knowledge shows people that there's hope and things that can be done. It's a small thing, but a fundamental one-- without hope, there will be no change at all.

[@887frodo]

@@tammysilverwolf1085 And do not forget that (and boy am I gonna get attached for this) the US tends to ask first for democratic values out of poor nations in need of aid before committing to them. China and Russia don't really mind the corruption as long as their own interests are met (which we do too to a great extent but unlike them, over here we are held to democratic scrutiny)

[@atyshlmes4360]

If you want to slow the US or China, you have to cause a financial crash. To do that we would have to all not pay our debts at the same moment.

[@yyangcn]

This is kinda interesting. To start off, I am personally also relatively environmentalist in my approach to my own life habits: I save energy by shutting off all appliances when not using, and make energy saving upgrades around my house; I try to use public transport as much as possible; I limit my meat intake to only what's necessary for my health; I avoid bottled water and limit plastic bag usage, etc. You get the point. BUT, I am an engineer working for a US company whose technology is about controlling internal combustion engine, and it's somewhat outdated technology so it doesn't conform to latest emission standards in developed economy. So what we do? We sell it to developing countries. Namely, we sell the products to Indian and Chinese engine makers, who then export the polluting engines to even poorer countries because even India and China no longer allows this old stuff any more on their own land. Now here is the dilemma: to raise the living standards in those countries they need reliable source of electric energy. Our products are primarily used for power generators, and many developing countries need engines with our products, especially where the power grid is unreliable or in some cases non existent. Without a proper grid, all the renewable energy source like wind and solar are not feasible, so these generators are all they have. They cannot afford the fancy engines that meet strict emission restrictions in the West either, because those new fuel systems are quite expensive. Also those new fuel systems require very clean fuel, which is not available in those countries. The bottom line is: my company's products allows the poor countries to develop their local economy, but they are also polluting their air and contributing to greenhouse gas emission. Still, our products are better than nothing so it's unlikely the demand for our products will go away until they become rich enough to afford a good grid. Meanwhile I'm getting paid a salary to support my standard of living typical in the US. It's a moral gray zone that I am not entirely comfortable with, but it's the reality of life.

[@safir2241]

If you want a brighter gray, donate to a political candidate with a clear stance on climate change.

[@professorthread]

Hank makes a strong point about using our dollars to lobby congress. How would an average person go about lobbying their congress people beyond calls and emails? We all know money talks.

[@Lazarosaliths]

I think you are making a mistake here... People dont "love" fossil fuels, or people shouldn't want more fossil fuel, solar or wind power.... People love energy and people need energy and as we advance in time we need even more energy, fossil fuels are just a step in a ladder to get as much energy as possible without destroying our own homeplanet. For 150 years fossil fuels where the best, now we change that and maybe in 100 years comes fusion and after that dyson swarms. People love energy

[@gardenhead92]

Yeah I feel like this video was built off a strawman argument. No one has any affection for fossil fuels in particular. I would happily pay for energy from a renewable source. It's up to the companies to provide those options on a large-scale

[@JunSian1001]

I think the video simply asks the audiences to view things in a complex way. For example, you can ask people at the coal states and oil states whether they have affection for fossil fuels and the socio-economic values which come with the extraction and utilization of fossil fuels. It is not just the fossil fuel companies, which need to adapt. It is also the social, economical, political values, which comes our dependency on fossil fuel, which needs to adapt.

[@StonesAndBones2]

I think you are making a mistake here... they are well aware of that. You juste are taking a statement somewhere in the video at face value, this is not what they really meant.

[@jedigecko06]

People love energy, and _at the moment_ that means fossil fuels. People are afraid of leaving a past they know, for a future they don't.

[@Soken50]

People don't like fossil fuels, but they don't like renewables either, they say it's unsightly and noisy (wind) , takes too much space (solar), too dangerous (nuclear), destroys rivers (hydro) There is no perfect source of energy but the best we have for now is maxed out hydro and fill the rest with nuclear as these are the two lowest emission electricity generators, require relatively low land space and cause relatively low deaths per megawatt. To convince you of that check the carbon emissions of say France or Sweden (nuclear and hydro mostly) versus Denmark or Germany ( fossil fuel backing up renewables)

[@CG_Hali]

Thanks for talking about this. We searched 'guilt and climate change' just 2 weeks ago and almost nothing on the subject came up. This was missing!

[@emilyplunkett6034]

I grew up in Ontario's Lambton County, which was one of the first places in all of North America where they first drilled for oil. Every family on my Mom's side of the family had at least one member who worked in the refineries in Sarnia along the St. Clair River. Recently, there was a report on CBC Radio exploring Michigan's want to shut down the Enbridge line 5 that runs through the state that scared the crap out of me. It feels terrible, because I want to do good by the environment and it would be nice to not have people refer to my hometown as the Chemical Valley; but my god it would be absolutely devastating for my hometown if line 5 is shut down and I do hope they are able to negotiate something.

[@camlinhall1363]

The bargaining stage of grief. It's OK.

[@darylwilliams7883]

This video gets to the heart of the conflict. I've always said that the real contest is between those who have empathy for others and feel connected, not only to other people but to future generations, versus those who care only about their own personal, immediate wealth and convenience. And since people are attracted to political parties not because of policies or ideas but because of their own psychological imperatives, the conflict has become political as well.

[@sonorasgirl]

Lol it reminds me of Gandalf’s quote (butchering it here) “we cannot chose the time we are born in. All we can do is chose what we do with the time given to us”.

[@wrijack]

Starting to think that it could be a good idea for organizations to start campaigning for donations outside of Whole Foods to support political tools for change rather than just discrete purchases on Cool Bread.

[@Crocy]

This channel's making a real difference, at the very least in my own mind. Being idle is a terrible feeling.

[@briangarrow448]

I live in the Pacific Northwest, and grew up next to a pulp and paper complex, where my father worked for 35 years. When I complained as a kid about the smoke from the mill he stated, that smoke feeds you and your siblings. As a teenager I joined an apprentice program and became a journeyman boilermaker. I built and repaired those pulp mills, refineries, power plants that contributed to climate change. I would have rather built more environmentally friendly plants, but I didn't get to decide.

[@briangarrow448]

@North Peak I have no guilt. I built as many pollution control devices and structures as polluting facilities. Frankly I've done more for the environment than a electric bus full of Sierra Club members. And I did quality work on all of them. I still believe we need a mix of energy sources until we can bring more renewable facilities online. And if I wasn't retired, I'd be building wind turbines and solar generating power plants, and new nuclear plants.

[@jimferguson31701]

We are all to blame. And here we are in the 65th mass extinction. Oh sorrow sweet sorrow. With the love and grace that appear in this heart, I miss you dear friends, I miss you. It was a good run, not all was vanity and fear, there has been great love and beauty flowing from humanity, its just a project that is dying in hubris. With each breath, my friends, with each breath: mercy, forgiveness, acceptance. ...and the ban played on...

[@matmarah155]

"It's important to have complicated views on things" well said!

[@nathanyou1899]

Who would have thought Hank GREEN would be eco-friendly

[@Noukz37]

This is a helluva important topic! I felt the same when I went vegan as well, but I processed the emotions and thoughts eventually and started being kinder to myself, and others.

[@Conus426]

Good video but the best part is definitely the John Green with the AFC Wimbledon scarf.

[@toebeanteam6259]

The emotions that come with the complexity of climate change are one of the biggest factors in fighting it. On the one hand, we are contributing to the problem every day by being fossil fuel ballers, and on the other hand, we have to live in the society we have. There is a great support network called Good Grief that does support groups for climate change to help anyone who may be struggling with the complexities of these emotions. Great video, thanks for sharing.

[@Hoigwai]

The best answer is always this. Do the best you can with what you have. I too have a grandfather who owned an oil company (home and business fuel oil heat). If I had the money to change my home to 100% solar/wind with batteries I would but, being poor leaves me without that option. I am fortunate that in my county we have a 100% free public transportation that we voted for and it's paid for by the tourism we have here. So, we are doing something, would I like more, you bet but this is what we can do for now.

[@madlenn3309]

Many thanks for the very useful and visual material!

[@tay012]

Thank you for sharing Hank. I have felt in the middle of the climate change war for a long time and your story helped me comprehend that being complex in my thinking is better than being shifted to either side.

[@totonow6955]

Enlightening. Thank you.

[@ogjoepat]

Thank you! More people need to hear this

[@FigureOnAStick]

Personally, I have a difficult time feeling shame or guilt for using fossil fuels or the state of the environment at all. I was born in 1995: I had no hand in the fact that our society was built upon a foundation of fossil fuels, nor that fossil fuel companies and world governments deliberately suppressed the knowledge the detrimental effects of that fossil fuel use until it became an imminent crisis. By the time I came of age, climate change was already happening. What I do feel is deeply responsible for the well-being of the earth, humanity and our fellow species on this planet, however. My generation will likely be the last to have access to such powerful tools before we necessarily downshift into a less energy intensive society (or, you know, just die off entirely). While I'm here, I want to do what I can to preserve the good of our society, dispel the bad and restore that which we've broken. I obviously won't be able to accomplish too much, and likely my whole generation will be focused on stabilizing a shitty situation for the next half century. But there will be generations after us, and I feel that it is our honor at present to fight as hard as we can so that it's more than just a token gesture to pass the baton on to them.

[@RupaniJuvell]

AMAZING Video. Thank you!!!

[@davidsavige]

We definitely need a lot more conversations like this to get to the attitudes and values that guide our thinking- maybe more of us will pressure the government and industry to change.

[@scotthenrie5674]

It's the other way around, the government is already doing that to us. John Cook, the lead author behind the study claiming 97% of scientists agree about anthropogenic global warming (it's actually 32.4%) said “the motivation for the analysis was the importance of scientific consensus in shaping public opinion, and therefore policy.” This link will start playing where it covers that, but please watch all of it because he's saying that we don't know. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqWlqXyVrsmVl5Y To prove he said that, here's a search that'll only find that exact sentence. www.google.com/search?q=%22the+motivation+for+the+analysis+was+the+importance+of+scientific+consensus+in+shaping+public+opinion+and+therefore+policy%22

[@scotthenrie5674]

You obviously don't know what smog looks like. gbtimes.com/beijing-issues-first-blue-air-pollution-alert-of-2018

[@scotthenrie5674]

As for the idea of what climate scientists think, NASA's page claiming that 97% of scientists agree about anthropogenic global warming is cherry picked data. Because they only used articles that expressed an opinion on the cause of global warming *in the abstract.* Look at the bottom of the page, it even says the lead author didn't read the entire article for the studies. It also says climate.nasa.gov/scientific-consensus/ The website NASA used for citation even says papers that rejected the consensus weren't included. “A survey of authors of those papers (N = 2412 papers) also supported a 97% consensus. Tol (2016 Environ. Res. Lett. 11 048001) comes to a different conclusion using results from surveys of non-experts such as economic geologists and **a self-selected group of those who reject the consensus.*”* Here's the link to the data, which is the exact same website NASA used for the scientific consensus. iopscience.iop.org/1748-9326/8/2/024024/media/erl460291datafile.txt

[@scotthenrie5674]

Climate scientists hate the enormous pressure caused by people like you, because it's killing scientific research. I encourage you to read this PDF by the climate scientist Dr. Judith A. Curry, specifically page 41 (type in page 45 in a PDF reader) www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-114shrg21644/pdf/CHRG-114shrg21644.pdf “Data Or Dogma? Promoting Open Inquiry In The Debate Over The Magnitude Of Human Impact On Earth’s Climate” “There is enormous pressure for climate scientists to conform to the so-called consensus. This pressure comes not only from politicians, but from Federal funding agencies, universities and professional societies, and scientists themselves who are green activists and advocates. Reinforcing this consensus are strong monetary, reputational, and authority interests.” “As a result, I have become very concerned about the integrity of climate science. In the last 5 years, I have published a series of papers that address the inadequacies that I see in how climate scientists address the issue of uncertainty, and provide ways forward for improved reasoning about the complex problems in climate science:” • “Climate science and the Uncertainty Monster” by J. A. Curry and P. J. Webster journals.ametsoc.org/doi/pdf/10.1175/2011BAMS3139.1 • “Reasoning about climate uncertainty” www.climateaccess.org/sites/default/files/CurrylReasoning%20about%20climate%20uncertainty.pdf • “Nullifying the climate null hypothesis” onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wcc.141/ • “Climate science: no consensus on consensus” curryja.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/consensus-paper-revised-final.doc

[@fromscratchauntybindy9743]

Nailed it on the head for my feels Hank, thanks for helping me get my head around it better and articulating it better that I ever could. DFTBA 🙅

[@scotthenrie5674]

Sorry but they just kept brainwashing you. “2. any method of controlled systematic indoctrination, *especially one based on repetition or confusion:* _brainwashing by TV commercials.”_ Not sorry. www.dictionary.com/browse/brainwashing

[@christopherbaker1028]

Don't feel guilty about things you did in the past if you didn't really get it before. But now that we all know that CO2 and other green house gasses are a problem, you should feel guilty if you are not now acting. I don't want your guilt, I want your action. Vote for a carbon tax to get market forces working on this problem. Buy an EV (best) or hybrid that gets great mileage for your next car. Take the bus. Eat less or no meat (especially beef), buy less stuff, fly a lot less, avoid products that are overly packaged. Put solar panels on your roof or invest in a community solar program. Join 350.org, Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebelion, or the Climate Reality Project (Al Gore). BEtter yet, start talking about this a a Climate Emergency with your friends and family. Get the ball rolling in people's minds. Thing will not change until enough people are ready to make some sacrifices and vote for the common good. There is a lot one can do and if you begin doing it, others will see and begin thinking about it and doing it too. As long as we all pretend that our contribution wont make a difference or that someone else should do it first, we will sentenced our kids to trying to make a living in a climate humans have never lived in by 2040 (arguably now in 2020).

[@juanolotgn]

Start by doing what you can on an individual level for sure and put whatever money/time you have to spare where your mouth is instead of complaining on facebook

[@Vanadyel99]

This is a great message! Thanks hot mess.

[@kartik_adhia]

my two favourite narrators in one video!

[@chadtheprogressivelibertar7787]

Don’t feel bad . It’s to late already anyway . We needed to start doing something 50 years ago . So get ready warmer, wetter , dryer world ! Should be a fun next 20 years ...

[@robramsey5120]

Whenever I hear people say we can't move on from fossil fuels, I always think or on the rare occasions I'm around people say; Whale Oil. People used to think killing whales was great, now the majority of people think it is a horrendous thing to do, I hope one day preferably in my lifetime people will have the same thoughts about oil & coal.

[@Obscurai]

Killing whales was acceptable when it was necessary. Once killing whales became no longer necessary then people could claim that killing whales was a bad thing. When renewable forms of energy become ubiquitous and increasingly viable, then burning fossil fuels will be more readily perceived to be a bad thing.

[@SuperQatarGirl]

I’ve always felt weird talking to people about the effects of fossil fuels on climate change, mainly because I grew up in a family where both parents came from the oil and gas business. I’ve never known my dad to work in any other field, and that fact has recently begun to make me feel... unworthy? of participating in the discussion. How can we talk about stopping climate change when we’re an entire household that basically live off of the main cause of it? One good thing I think having grown up in a family like this has done, though, is that I’ve heard what you people are saying in this video from a very young age: I’ve heard a man that makes his livelihood on fossil fuels express how necessary they are for modern living (and our living, in particular) while expressing complete recognition of climate change and the effects we are having on our planet and wanting to do something about it (we’re thankfully major science nerds, my dad and I, so no climate change denial here). So I know exactly what you are trying to say here, and I wholeheartedly agree. Keep up the good work!

[@gracebrunson5801]

I respect fossil fuels for everything they've done for us but I also believe there are greener alternatives as well. We can't absolutely get rid of fossil fuels but we can make them more eco-friendly.

[@CarbonRadio]

This is an important conversation. More Hank Green!

[@gewamser]

As a lifelong genuine environmentalist, I have always been acutely aware of my own impact on the ecosystem.

[@AidanRatnage]

My grandad didn't own an oil rig but he worked for a coal fired power station and made a lot of money from it.

[@gingergamergirl98]

I feel guilty whenever I throw away non-recyclable plastics or metals. But it’s not my fault, it’s the company’s fault (who decided to use non-recyclable plastics or aluminum foil in the first place). But I still feel the guilt as I do it. So....how can I change this?

[@brianmerkosky9243]

We don't love fossil fuels, we love the cheap abundant energy they provide... We can get that energy from other sources now. Iceland uses more energy per capita than any other nation on Earth, yet they get this from a lot of renewable energy, mostly geothermal. Not every country sits on geologically active zones like they do but every country has their own unique advantages and challenges to produce abundant clean energy.

[@WhereRaul]

I'm the biggest hypocrite, I work in the oilfield and the company I work for is named after my dad. I hate the oilfield because of the damage it causes, but at the same time it provides for all the families here where I'm from. I get so depressed about this 😥

[@BobQuigley]

People are blind to the fact that the move to sustainable future will create the greatest wealth and innovation wave ever

[@cliffhendry8272]

By giving the government trillions of dollars?

[@burpingcricket]

Yes a part of the apathy is shame. However, for me it’s mostly a bad circle of not knowing what a good way is to help, trying to find out by educating my self and instead getting paralyzed by fear and depression. I’m mentally disabled so that probably makes it a bit diffrent than for others but pretty sure I’m not alone in just not knowing where to start.

[@JosephFuller]

Thank you for this video. I often struggle with various things mentioned here and swing between them at times. It does make me feel a bit better though to know that I am not alone in those feelings; because no one in my family or social group cares one iota about this. They look at me like I'm crazy because I don't buy new clothes every year or a new PC or don't have a smart phone. I try to tell them that it is my personal choice as I think it is one small way I can help but they tell me that I am wrong and that I should just be like everyone else (powerless, guilty and hopeless).

[@brianmarona2517]

I think his conflict is understandable also is because he's educated and now he educates it's what it is called redemption

[@D0GBOOT]

GREAT video!! Now we just need more people to see it!

[@Jimzeel]

Being a better person does not start by feeling bad, but by learning from your choices and use those lessons. Sad thing is though, that sulking in a corner about how bad you are, or even worse, just ignoring these issues because they are to painfull, is the easier way chosen by many a person..... So doing anything you can, even if it is something small, is still better then what a lot of people do.

[@tshaa]

Y'all really represented John with a AFC Wimbledon scarf

[@inlovewithcycling]

The video was good, and the message is truly meaningful. However, at 5:30 he sad: "I'm not calling for massive socialism", it makes me think that he doesn't really see the whole picture.

[@Daniel-ht4wr]

You should know that socialist countries like the USSR and China had some of the absolute worst environmental records dumping radioactive waste into lakes and rivers and polluting the environment with impunity. We need the private sector to develop efficient renewable resources through government subsidies.

[@globaldigitaldirectsubsidi4493]

"Die economic anarchy of capitalism is the root of all evil." - Albert Einstein

[@42thgamer80]

Great video!

[@jakubkrc3974]

Is there a way how we can support Hot Mess? Something like Patreon?

[@Nmethyltransferase]

It's easy to hate tobacco companies. It's not as easy to hate all the pleasure (of smoking) they've given us.

[@DragonFae16]

For me, if someone is doing something they don't know is doing harm or they have no choice, they get a pass. But people who do know it's harmful and do have the choice, then they are fully to blame for their actions. Anyone who lives in a wealthy country and has enough money to decide where their energy comes from, or what kind of car they drive and other such things that effect the climate, are fully and completely to blame for their own actions.

[@willeryyeo8421]

Man, this video is pretty much like my idea. The whole idea just spills out on this video. THANK YOU.

[@lunacouer]

6:25 That totally reminds me of South Park's episode "Smug Alert!", where people in South Park start buying hybrid cars. southpark.cc.com/clips/155193/thanks I appreciate you bringing that aspect up. It's a lot easier to bring your behaviors inline with your values when you can afford it.

[@dhiegov]

Thank you, that's a good ep.

[@Fair_Gravity]

I'm so happy that the Green Brother's are turning oil money into Science outreach / beautiful pros. I wouldn't feel guilty about it. Embrace it. Turn you're not more of the same. You are evolution at it's finest. I'm just glad it's the two of you who got some oil money and not other kids... Who would turn that oil money into more... Oil... Money.

[@k.nielsen5589]

if you want to get rid of guilt. connect with other people who have guilt. use your shared power to construct ideas.

[@tregonzo]

guilt is a great motivator, use your guilt to plant 1500 trees. between 10 to 50 trees capture the carbon for 1 person over their lifetime. 1500 trees covers you and your family back as far as at least your grandparents. 3 generations of your family becomes carbon neutral.

[@scotthenrie5674]

It'd be better if they stopped clear cutting the rainforests.

[@Obscurai]

Guilt is an old tactic - many religions rely on it.

[@lastyhopper2792]

You gotta make sure those trees don't got cut out by a certain irresponsible group of people though

[@tregonzo]

@@lastyhopper2792 returning to fine crafted wood furniture would also be a carbon sink, when you hand down your table and chairs, or your dresser etc. over 5+ generations.

[@tobiasmeerdink5023]

"We live in a society"

[@ginnyjollykidd]

I feel complicated about fossil products because we found so many uses for them in the industrial age and beyond. There is obviously a need for all these products, and energy needs to be changed, but so do the other products we get from fossil fuels. I feel we need a plastic replacement. I think we need a total - recycle program including compost. I know there have to be people working on this. I don't know who or where, but there must be an established system as well. I felt so accomplished when I recycled everything accepted by the recycle bins. And then my travel options and budget got more restricted, and my home doesn't have that service. I do what I can with my limitations. I can't do it all the time. But I keep trying, and I keep trying to spread the word.

[@ACivillage]

The choice ohhh I and many like me(billions) have never got a chance to fly in an aeroplane, or buy a car and still we find life not that tough

[@user-cp3ju2fz4z]

I never felt shame about it, but when I see a baby or a little Child, I see someone really cute, weak, defenseless and innocent, someone I feel extremely humble and humiliate for..... But at the same time I know for sure that child or baby will get violently, slaughtered in a Mass-Extinction Event in suffer and pain without any hope, without relief or mercy and there is nothing I can give as protection and I can not save someone from, even not by risking my life and giving everything - it will be never good enough to save someones life - that is the psychological problem about climate change every day when facing someone who is under 3 years old - I feel humble - sadness, pain and a great depression. I felt never that gateful about property, this is just converted resources which are free to have from nature, only respectful to people with skills do work and get that resources to a better object, meaning and function - I may feel bad not everyone has much then enough property what should be a natural reality. Normaly everyones birth right should be to live life in extreme wealth without a limit and without the consequences of pollution, I mean when you look out there, you see in respect to earth only dead trash stupid lifeless stuff in the whole universe which is not a use and has no importance at all because there is no life can give something an importance and what will all end up in a supernover class type or in a black hole some day no matter what, there should be the pollution and there should be enough recources for life out there off earth, but at the moment it is like mankind does not get rid of the dirt in front of the house (Earth) and not taking shoes off, we are still stupid and limited to do otherwise (limited to and on earth), so we get our whole house dirty and can not clean up fast and good enough and not replace or maintain all the wrecked household, we can not leave earth to go shopping and we do never bring our trash outside, it always stinks and does just rot there in our house and does threaten our health and bring pain & death. I think mankind is still like a little baby cute and willing but stupid, uneducated and limited, not mobile enough and has no feeling or mind to deal with limited resources and options only at home on earth and not mature enough with missing options of technologies, transport and infrastructure to overcome a bounded place called home. I never saw mankind as a intelligent species only as a willing to be intelligent species in rare moments of life and history, modern mankind does see itself sometimes as a god is ridiculous and not natural anymore is ridiculous and to see themselfs as dominating something is ridiculous, Mankind lost the sense of the need of surivial in nature is foolish and to feel too less humble is based on arrogance and a stupid feeling of false security, a security that does not exist in nature - a species only stays home but breeding, consuming and eating everything there is without having the option to get new and enough resources and can not get rid of the trash because we are still underdeveloped and without responsibility and whinnig to often to be fed, is a child not mature. Even the richest people on earth are poor as hell no matter what think of themselfs, they never have enough money and recources just to buy little things like to feed and bring freshwater to 5% of the world population in need, the richest people on earth will not manage to do this small task with their small money and we are talking only about 5% to assure them 2 simple resources every day, or they can not build up companies have the target to build a city on mars or an interstellar voyage or to change the whole energystructure of a whole nation, in a few decades, their small money is by far not enough to do so, they still would need to lend a lot of money to reach such small, simple task.

[@LePedant]

I was surprised when I found out that Joe wasn't a Green brother.

[@edgeeffect]

I was getting freaked out by how nonsensical this is until you said "if you're in either group you just aren't being honest about reality".

[@Kiyarose3999]

If 200 years ago they put Tidal turbines in the Thames where every Coal power station would be, and Micro Hydro turbines on our many rivers we would never have needed Fossils!.

[@monicasofiaperez8556]

I can't sleep because of how guilty I feel.

[@safir2241]

Organize a protest. There’s a global protest with adults & schools combined, on September 20th. Join the Fridays for the future discord server. Join the revolution.

[@papac6831]

it dont matter what you done or used in the past what matters is what we do today and in the future.

[@bosmith9334]

Best video you have made so far! Love this channel. Keep up the good fight!

[@HShango]

I agree with Hank in many aspects on climate Change and how we can make a massive change (by mitigating the massive problem that'll occur on a long-term basis on Earth) Our home, like Macron said we do not have a planet B, we only have Planet A (Earth) and we can't afford to just sleep walk into the biggest disaster of our time/existence.

[@pakrett]

Yeah Macron says stuffs... But saying isn't really doing, and France is now totally late on his Paris agreement.

[@LisaBeergutHolst]

*Joe Hanson:* "Now I'm not calling for like, massive socialism..." *Me:* Aw Joe, we were so close 😉

[@jpl_btc]

Their true colors have shown

[@LisaBeergutHolst]

​@JPL Propósito Azul: you say "true colors" like it's a bad thing 🤔

[@davidwilkie9551]

That's why Science is a process of observation that brings us a sense of proportion. "You can't argue with the facts", and you can use the inevitable cognitive bias of the knowledge to do whatever is within your means, and demonstrate the process to everyone else. It's "one sided" because it's one shared planet, and it can/will change "one person at a time" = now-together.

[@cultibotics]

As I've been saying, one of the best ways to create a market for hydrogen would be to use it to extend the energy content of carbonaceous fuels, including, but not limited to coal and petroleum, turning them into lighter hydrocarbons, such as propane, ethane, or methane. As the infrastructure for producing and handling hydrogen expands and the volume produced increases, it can gradually replace other chemical forms of energy.

[@chriswarren-smith62]

The bad thing is we haven't yet started builing industrial scale CO2 scrubbers all over the planet. Its the only way to get back to < 400 ppm

[@SuperDipMonster]

If we cleaned the oceans up, we wouldn't need to build anything.

[@weebslime]

living in a poor country makes it the powerless feeling so tremendous

[@ZomBeeNature]

I think people would convert to solar power immediately if there was not such an expensive price tag on it.

[@SuperDipMonster]

@North Peak, I found out the energy companies were selling the excess energy to Poland on the cheap so they didn't have to reduce the energy bills for us.

[@ZomBeeNature]

@@GrandeHq okay, spill the beans! I suspect your beans will release other gasses though 😉

[@ZomBeeNature]

@@GrandeHq YouTurd gets nasty to people who spam comments, so you should change something

[@kartik_adhia]

The problem is that fossil fuels are, at the moment, heavily subsidized by the goverment. Renewable energy has become cheaper since a couple of years. Which means we are paying more for the fossil fuels, we just dont realise it!

[@kartik_adhia]

www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/fossil-fuel-subsidies-pentagon-spending-imf-report-833035/

[@Anonymous0191]

Every frequency of electromagnetic radiation can be converted into electricity, magnetic fields can be converted into electricity, thermoelectric materials convert heat into electricity, and when you run electric current though a conductor in water it produces hydrogen, oxygen gas which burns clean and is more powerful than fossil fuels, and under high pressure water can be used to create fusion. You can also create a small generator with some magnets and a computer fan, a more advanced version would be the Searl Effect Generator. We have never needed Fossil Fuels, they used steam engines back in the day, they even had cars that ran on electricity back in the 1800s, the oil companies bought out all the patents for electric and hydrogen cars and suppressed the technology for over 200 years.

[@adamkrauss303]

Thanks for this crucially important video and for all your amazing and insightful content. Climate impacts every facet of our daily life. Although Climate Change (sometimes called “global warming”) still has its ever shrinking group of naysayers, even the major fossil fuel companies have admitted that mankind has and continues to impact the earth's climate in negative ways, including through the emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. It is beyond reproach that the Earth’s climate is changing in ways that will undoubtedly present negative impacts that will be bourne on some level by every person and business. Many of the scientific models present catastrophic damage scenarios occurring relatively soon - within the lifespan of our children. The monetary cost of climate change - be it for adaptive actions or failure to adapt, will be enormous, eclipsing the GDP of many developed countries for decades to come. Injury and damage to persons, property, businesses, governments, ecosystems and natural resources, to name but a few, are unfortunately unavoidable at some level. For those interested in a comprehensive overview of Climate Change, including the science, data trends, damages, domestic and international legislative initiatives, financial implications and mitigative measures, I encourage you to read my recent White Paper which you may access through the below link. Thanks: www.traublieberman.com/images/uploads/people/Perspectives/climate_change_white_paper_FINAL_2019.pdf

[@conradb209]

Probably should post psychologists in the environmental schools to help them face the reality that they’re wasting everyone’s time. And their own. Thinking they can impact the climate and shame people into agreeing is vanity.

[@gasdive]

I'm being honest about reality. We could stop right away. Giving up slavery didn't mean we had to give up all the great things slavery brought us. Food, clothes, sailing ships (international trade). We just started doing things differently. There was no need to burn everything to the ground and start again. All we need now, is to start doing things differently. Are you upset that China is building coal plants? Then spend a couple of billion giving away stand alone solar in Africa. Out generous them. Worried that automakers will be slow at providing electric cars? Just set emission standards (something we've done for decades) but this time ignore the protests from automakers that they're impossible. (point to Tesla if you have to). It's all doable straight away.

[@monnae]

Hi Hank! :D

[@globaldigitaldirectsubsidi4493]

global direct democracy

[@HShango]

This is seriously nice to know 🤓

[@nathanjarboe4927]

This guy looks so similar to Hank Green that I thought they were the same person for the longest time.

[@dickgoblin]

If you feel climate change guilt that means you're a rational and empathetic person, but you need to use that rationale to be an activist in your community to get other to feel climate guilt. Guilt can be a force for good

[@Hansca]

You're facing the dilemma that is at the heart of all religions, original sin, I'm afraid guilt is just a part of being religious.

[@Hansca]

@North Peak Yes but with these new age religions like Environmentalism and Veganism I see that the people practicing them see themselves as the Gods. Removed from the natural world and somehow guiding our destiny. As a side note, I say new age religions but that's not really correct, they are more correctly described as new takes on the oldest religions.

[@holdmybeer]

i go out of my way to help. im not a saint but i try.

[@UGMD]

Woah it’s Mr. Vidcon himself!