The billionaires they are once again stating that technology will save us. In a interview posted Monday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that by the end of this decade he expects us to have access to virtual reality glasses that will have allow us to feel like we are teleporting to other people’s homes and staying on time. In turn, this could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from travel.
“Obviously, they will continue to be cars and planes and all that. But the more we can teleport, not only do we personally eliminate daily commutes and things that are something that catches us individually, but I think it’s also better for society and the planet at large, ”Zuckerberg said in the information.
Globally, the traffic sector is one of them bigger contributors to the climate crisis and, in the United States, pollution in the traffic sector constitutes the larger share of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. There is no doubt that this must change.
But will virtual reality glasses help us reduce carbon emissions? May be. Studies on the production of greenhouse gases from VR technology are limited, but it is true that the carbon emissions associated with an individual call to Zuckerberg’s possible smart glasses may be lower than those associated with a trip to plane across the country, for example. Right now, though, we don’t have enough information to know for sure.
“Video conferencing already [reduces travel-related carbon emissions] to a limited degree, but I don’t think anyone can say in advance if virtual reality will be fresh enough for people to give up leisure travel. If it replaces business travel and meetings, it will be clearly positive, “Jonathan Koomey, an energy and climate researcher who runs a sustainable IT consultancy, wrote in an email, adding that” there there are so many unknowns about it that it’s hard to say anything definitive. “
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RV also does not replace face-to-face work that requires face-to-face interactions and work, from construction to food service. The millions of people working in this industry will continue to travel. In order to be a nuisance in business travel, it is likely that virtual reality technology will have to be used quite widely in other sectors. And when it comes to traveling for fun, Koomey doesn’t think he has nearly one shot.
“I doubt people will choose to use VR instead of spending a tropical vacation,” he said.
Of course, not everyone spends a tropical vacation. In fact, a recent study was found that only 11% of people traveled by plane worldwide and no more than 4% of the world’s population took international flights. But the study found that the global elite is flying unabated. Only 1% of the world’s population was responsible for half of the world’s emissions from commercial flights that year.
If flying in planes is bad, catching private planes is much worse. A single PJ flight can be produced nationwide almost double all annual production of greenhouse gases for an average American. Still, Facebook has it covered almost $ 3 millions inside private jet expenses for Zuckerberg in 2019, according to federal disclosures. In addition to flying for business, Zuckerberg also has one $ 100 million mansion in Hawaii. It’s hard to imagine him giving up travel there to stay home with VR headphones.
In a sense, though, it’s not entirely Zuckerberg’s fault. We cannot expect people with a level of extreme wealth to simply act in good faith and make personal decisions that are better for our collective future on Earth. In other words, we cannot simply depend on people who choose to buy new luxury technologies to solve the climate crisis. The world’s leading climate scientists say we need high levels of government regulation to curb pollution by aviation, cruises, cars, and other polluting sectors.
Zuckerberg, however, has remained firmly anti-regulation. But, of course, he has to: his job is to make money on Facebook. Making VR glasses the next big thing could be great for Zuckerberg’s quest to enrich Facebook and himself the company participation in technology. And marking your glasses as green could help you do that.
In any other sense, however, there is little evidence that virtual reality glasses do much. So if Mark Zuckerberg really cares about reducing emissions that heat the planet, maybe he does to start with a more robust solution to combat climate negation, avenues for deniers to announce lies, and in general not funding them or its events in first place.