At the moment, my career as a political analyst involves a lot of travel to conferences and speaking engagements around the world, amounting to hundreds of thousands of miles in planes, trains and automobiles. I am probably burning several times more fossil fuels than the average Kenyan, and maybe significantly more than the average Western middle-class person. I feel increasingly guilty about this and I’m actively exploring ways to make amends but, like most people, I don’t know where to begin. How can individuals whose work and lives contribute significantly to environmental destruction be part of the solution?
I’ve tried to be deliberate about efforts to mitigate my impact. For example I don’t drive at the moment, am attempting a low-plastic lifestyle and travel with reusable cups and bottles. When in towns that I am familiar with I primarily use public transport. But I’m the first to admit that after 10 flights in four weeks, the last thing I want to do is be on a subway trying to get to a place I don’t recognize in a country where I don’t speak the language. So, many times, I’ve just opted to take a taxi.
