Fight climate change

How to tackle climate change with the Meta-Problem Method

Climate change is a dilemma

The future of all life on this planet, including our children and grandchildren, depends on how successful we are at fighting climate change. The science gets clearer every year that the path we’re on is a dead end, and the “dead” part is likely us humans.

The question is which problem (or cluster of problems) should we choose to solve? Which will give us the best bang for our buck, given our limited resources?

The Meta-Problem Method is about choosing the best problem to solve, but only after you’ve defined the goals you care about, explored your many options, and weighed the trade-offs. To learn more about the Meta-Problem Method, click here.

How much will you give up?

The vast scale of climate change is daunting. Solving it requires individual actions from all of us, but also collective action at the level of communities and countries across our world.

The key decision we each need to make is what we’re willing to give up personally to solve a given problem. For example, one of the simplest things you can do is to quit eating red meat – one meal with beef has the same environmental impact as multiple meals with other protein options.

Questions to ask yourself

What actions can I take in my personal and work life to reduce climate change? Switching to energy efficient light bulbs? Minimizing the number of documents I print? Risking a stock-out to reduce waste in the grocery store I manage?

What actions can I influence others to take? Start with your family and friends, then think bigger, like communication campaigns, changing government standards like mileage rules for vehicles, or teaching kids the consequences of climate change.

What am I willing and able to do? How can I apply my skillset to this problem? Which options will provide the greatest return compared to the effort involved?

Multiply your impact

You can pursue a portfolio of actions that will together impact your goals. However, if you want to reduce the impacts of climate change at scale, you will need to move beyond direct action to influencing others.

We all lead busy and time-poor lives, so be realistic, and remember that there are millions if not billions of people doing what they can.

Choose an example below to learn more about the
Meta-Problem Method and how it can help guide your choices