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Make things better by making better things.
In 1902, William Carrier invented the first modern air conditioning unit. What it allowed was more than just the ability to control the temperature in a room. Once AC became ubiquitous in part of the design of houses and commercial buildings, it fundamentally changed the landscape of where people can live. No longer do you have a small select group of people that live in Phoenix, Arizona. Now, nearly five million people live there. During the summer months, you can move from one space to another without ever having to experience 72-degree weather. What Carrier could not have known, this also changed the political landscape. Many Republicans who were not re-elected moved to areas like Florida, Texas, and so on to continue their political careers.
What other side effects does AC have? It turns out that nearly 4% of greenhouse gasses that are emitted are caused by air conditioning. What it also does is insulate us from how hot (or cold) our environment really is. This is another step in disconnecting us from our natural environment, one of the biggest mental hurdles in the climate crisis. The perception isn’t the reality. For example, when power was lost in Texas in 2021, citizens were instantly reminded of the harshness of their living environment. In 1995, during the Chicago heatwave, 700 people died because their AC units quit working.
The bottom line is that we have simultaneously conquered the environment in a world of innovation. Not the entire environment, of course. But there is a reason why wolves don’t run around Utah anymore. And sitting on top of the food chain makes us think we are invincible.
We forget the world is a harsh place to live. The further removed we put ourselves away from it, the more likely we are to treat it as a nuisance instead of reality.