So what will it take for your neighbor down the street to change?

If you are reading this blog, if you read this blog, yeah, I admit it has been a long time since I've posted, but I digress. If you are a reader of this blog, you are probably concerned about the impact of CO2 emissions on the planet's climate and worried about the subsequent impact on us as a species. Maybe you've dealt with killer storms or are still cutting your air with a knife in the fall. You say, enough already, climate change is real, and the data and the models suggest that it's a direct result of our voluminous combustion to feed our needs. Note combustion is not limited to fossil fuels, we are burning a heck of a lot of jungle for burgers and agriculture. So you have taken the plunge, and maybe gone electric. That shiny Tesla is pretty hot, and it's a brilliant move to be a no apologies green car. You get the gal, and you get green street cred. If you are really cool, maybe you've started walking to your coffee shop a few blocks away, or picked up a new ride of a bicycle. 

So the question, is not what is it going to change your mind and actions to reduce your carbon generation. The question of course, is how do you change your neighbor? What needs to happen in your mind to compel action to be reduce one's carbon footprint. 

It's a question that I wrestle with, since being here in a supposedly enlightened area, I still see people using their cars for short trips. The differential in time to go to the local Philz is maybe 2 minutes by bike, and 7 minutes walking. And that's before you factor in parking. But I still see people turning on the ignition. 

Is self locomotion too hard? Too sweaty? Too uncool? Too inconvenient? Too limiting? What stops people from taking an alternative that while takes a few more minutes, is healthier for both the person and the environment? 

In California, will eBikes with mini-Trunks take off if offered, or will they be like so many pieces of exercise equipment collecting dust? What is going on people's minds, not what they say, but what will actually move them to change? That is the question we need to ask!