The First Time Something is Achieved, It Changes Consciousness
For four days the entire electrical usage of a European country came from renewable energy sources. More on that in a few paragraphs.
The thoughts we think and the reality we live in shapes what we think is possible. Time after time barriers are broken that were thought to be impossible. A great example is the four-minute mile. For decades in the first half of the 20th century, when track and field became popular around the world, it was thought that a man running a four-minute mile was impossible.
Then on May 6, 1954 Roger Bannister ran a 3:59.4 mile, doing the impossible. It had now become possible. Just a month and a half later, another runner, John Landy, ran a 3:57.9 mile. Within five years 20 different runners had broken that barrier and reduced the record by several seconds. The record is now 3:43, set in 1999.
Today we live in a world where electricity is largely generated by fossil fuels. Though, as written in this space recently, the end of the fossil fuel era has begun, it is hard for anyone alive to visualize a world without fossil fuels. Even people who want to get humanity off of its dependency of fossil fuels grudgingly accept that it will take a long time. Study after study shows what a small percentage of electricity comes from renewable energy sources.
We accept this as reality. It is the data. It is what we know. This reality is supported by all vested interests tied to all the fossil fuel industries.
Well, now we have an example of what we dream of, what we urgently need and want, but accept as impossible.
Earlier this month, Portugal gave us the energy equivalent of the four-minute mile. Electricity consumption in the country was fully covered by solar, wind and hydro power for an amazing 107 hours that lasted from 6:45am on Saturday May 7 until 5:45p the following Wednesday May 11. Courtesy of the Guardian, we featured it here on This Spaceship Earth’s Crew News and Activity news feed.
That’s right. A European country actually used no fossil fuels to generate electricity for more than four days! So it can be done!
This milestone has been preceded by some exciting developments. In 2015 wind power alone provided 42% of electricity in Denmark, 20% in Spain, 13% in Germany and 11% in the UK. Speaking of the UK, it recently experienced its first ever week of coal free electricity generation. The UK, using no coal!
This breakthrough in Portugal should change our consciousness about what is possible. We can go for periods of time generating electricity without any use of fossil fuels. As co-author of “This Spaceship Earth” and co-founder of This Spaceship Earth Inc. along with Tim Rumage, our mission is to create “Crew Consciousness” on This Spaceship Earth[TSE]. We all need to move from passive passengers to active crew members.
There are many people who are acting as TSE crew, but many of us don’t know if it is making a difference. Or we don’t have a sense of collective consciousness about crewing with others. In a recent “Crew Commentary” I wrote about the 2% solution. It is the crew actions of many that can create more times when countries can be fossil fuel free, even if it is just for days in the near term.
Most of you know what your energy bill is, but don’t know how much energy you use each month at home. You should. The average American household uses a bit under 1,000 kWh –kilowatt hours- per month. So the 2% solution is simple. Each month from now on, use 2% less energy. After the first month you will be down to 980 kWh. Using a constancy of 1,000, by the end of six months you will be using 880 kWh; a 12% reduction. The minimum if you want to crew this Spaceship Earth.
If you haven’t felt any real pain or discomfort, keep going. After 12 months you will be at 760 kWh of electricity each year. That should be a common goal. At some point you will feel discomfort or a sense of deprivation, if not in the first year, then certainly in the second. It is that moment that you have the moral dilemma of your personal comfort or the future of the biosphere.
If one million people do this it will have an effect. If ten million people do it we will collectively be altering the electricity landscape. If one hundred million people do this we will start to experience what Portugal has shown us is now possible.
Thank you Portugal for showing us what is possible and will soon become commonplace!
Note: if you do this, or are doing something that might be categorized as crew activity, please let me know here so we can add you to the crew counter. We just launched this non-profit weeks ago and our goal is to trigger, create and recruit 1 billion crew members ASAP. We know that there are millions of you out there. Please connect with this movement.