Carbon Footprints are a Scam Created by Big Oil

You’ve probably heard it before: “lower your carbon footprint!” But what does that even mean and why does it matter? And who even coined this term, anyway? Let’s answer all that and more today!

What is a carbon footprint?

According to Conservation.org, it is “a simple way to express that impact. The “size” of your carbon footprint depends on multiple factors. The primary one is the amount of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere by a given activity.” These activities are things like what transportation you take, what you eat, how often you travel, and things of that nature.

So, everyone has one. Whether you’re a billionaire flying on a private jet or a hippie living fully off the grid, you are still making some impact on the planet. As you can see by these two extremes, our carbon footprints differ from person to person.

But, it’s not just for individuals. It can be used to calculate the carbon footprint of an item such as a phone or an apple and the carbon footprint of a company or even a country.

That brings us to its origins…

Who invented the carbon footprint?

It was Ogilvy and Mather, of course! Yeah, that might be two guys, but it’s not just any two guys. It’s two lawyers working in New York City working for BP, British Petroleum…big oil.

Why?

BP was tired of the bad press: oil spills, pollution, you name it. They wanted to instead be known as “Beyond Petroleum.” This happened around the turn of the 21st century when climate change (or, global warming, as it was more popularly called back in those days) was becoming widely discussed and normalized.

So, in order to rebrand, they needed to shift the focus away from themselves. In 2004, they began the Carbon Footprint campaign to instead point the blame at individuals. Ever wonder why we’re always at each other’s throats about perfection and blaming one another? This is precisely why. BP essentially created a smear campaign against us little guys.

Yeah, we drive, our food requires transportation, we take flights, etc. We use fossil fuels. But why? We don’t really have a choice now, do we? Especially in the early 2000s, fossil fuels were the only way to get around unless you lived in a walkable or bikeable area. Fossil fuels were the only way to get food to your grocery store. You get the idea. But we have no choice but to partake in fossil fuel usage. Even when I work from home, I still use fossil fuels to run my computer. Even when I walk to school and use my secondhand notebook to take notes, fossil fuels are still providing light and heat to my school buildings. No matter how perfectly we try, our society is so reliant on fossil fuels and, therefore, we are, too.

Even today when we have more EVs and green energy than ever before, it’s still not that widely used. Plus, EVs come with a hefty price tag. Not only to purchase them but also for human rights.

Image from Squarespace

Are we really to blame?

As I already said, we have no choice but to partake in the usage of fossil fuels. Does that make you and me the problem? No!

The International Panel on Climate Change found that around 71% of global emissions come down to just 100 companies. My name sure didn’t make the list and yours didn’t either unless you’re Jeff Bezos. We’re shifting the blame back where it belongs: companies.

Just like with fossil fuels, we also have no choice but to partake in other wasteful systems such as plastic, lack of recycling, and so forth unless we are provided that access. It’s so silly (and downright harmful) to blame someone for opting for a sandwich wrapped in plastic if that is their only option. They may not have a deli where it can be made fresh, they may not have a kitchen or even the time to make it from scratch, and so forth. It’s ridiculous to blame someone for not recycling if their city doesn’t have recycling bins for them to use. You get the idea.

We need to blame companies for only providing us with wasteful options. We need to blame our cities, states, and countries for the lack of access to recycling, composting, and green energy.

But, our carbon footprints still matter…

Why we should care about our carbon footprints

I know, I know…I just got done rambling about how climate change is not my fault nor yours, so why should I care about my personal emissions? Well, every little bit does matter. No, I’m not going to single-handedly kill the planet taking one flight to see my family but if I were to omit that flight, that is a little bit less carbon put out into the planet which does matter.

This is not to make you feel guilty, but we do need to be mindful about our habits. It’s very similar to the whole “no ethical consumption under capitalism” conversation.

We can acknowledge that climate change is not our fault and that carbon footprints are a scam but that is not an excuse to overconsume. We must still live mindfully. Yes, do what you can and don’t burden yourself with the weight of the world, but don’t become a burden to the planet, either.

There is a difference between taking one vacation a year without feeling guilty and flying every single week. There is a difference between eating a steak once a month on a special occasion and feeling no guilt versus eating a steak every evening. There is a difference between buying plastic out of necessity if you don’t live near a refill store or can’t afford it and buying plastic even when you have other choices available to you.

I hope this is making sense.

I think we should still reduce our carbon footprints

I’m not going to lie, the carbon footprinting tools are helpful. They’re not the most accurate but I do think they provide a good place for you to start if you use them correctly. Don’t use them out of shame and guilt but as a means of education. If you have no idea how many emissions you are creating and you WANT to take action, they are a good place to start. Maybe you didn’t realize your diet was as carbon-intensive as you thought. Maybe you had never brainstormed ways to give up your car before. They can be helpful when used mindfully.

At the end of the day, we need both corporate action and individual action. Voting with our dollar matters. Companies follow the money. Therefore, our small actions matter. And many climate scientists agree that any carbon we prevent from being released into the atmosphere, the better. So, keep it up!

But, don’t forget who the real culprits are. Point the finger, call them out, hold them accountable. And please, quit judging one another. You don’t know someone’s full story. Have a conversation, educate one another, and uplift one another. We do not need to be tearing each other down. Everyone is welcome in this movement.

I hope that this was valuable and insightful. Thanks for joining me on the fight to eat the rich and make them pay for what they’ve done to our home.

As always, remember that your small actions make a big difference in the long run :)

Emma