How to Feng Shui Your Fridge — and Other Happy Climate Hacks | Jiaying Zhao | TED

Hi everyone.

I'm JZ.

Not the cool rapper,

(Laughter)

but the professor trying to cool the planet through behavior change.

(Laughter)

The other day I gave my students an assignment.

I asked them to come up with individual actions they can take

that serve two functions:

reduce greenhouse gas emissions

and make themselves feel happier.

They did a great job coming up with actions to reduce emissions,

but they had a much harder time with the happiness part.

One student told me that he wanted to cut back on cheese.

But right after he said that, he got really sad.

(Laughter)

Unfortunately, my students are not alone.

When most people think about climate action,

they immediately default to things they have to give up for the planet.

This mindset is so ingrained in us,

partly because the current narrative on climate action

is about personal sacrifice.

Drive less, eat less meat, shop less.

Less, less, less.

Now I'm a behavioral scientist, so trust me when I say this,

this framing doesn't make us feel great.

If anything, it makes us feel shameful and guilty.

And those negative emotions are not conducive to long term behavior change

because they make us retreat and disengage.

If the future of a planet depends on a few people

willing to make personal sacrifices,

we're not going to make it.

(Laughter)

So what should we do instead?

The aha moment came to me at the end of a faculty meeting

when my colleague, Elizabeth Dunn, approached me and asked,

"Can we make climate action feel happy instead of miserable?"

I said, "Of course."

But then it struck me

that I don't think anyone ever connected happiness to climate action.

So Liz and I set down to do exactly that.

Liz is a happiness scientist.

She knows what makes people happy.

I'm a behavioral scientist.

I know what makes people change their behavior.

I'm also a human carbon calculator.

I like figuring out exactly how much emissions certain activities have.

So first I came up with a list of actions

that can substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

And then Liz identified the actions with the largest happiness benefits.

And this is how we came up with what we call

the happy climate approach.

It's actions in the sweet spot that not only reduce emissions

but also make you feel happier at the same time.

Now, I know that some of you may think that individual actions may seem trivial

without large-scale system change.

I get that.

But let me tell you how I think about this as a behavior change expert.

Our individual actions do matter

because they embody our values

and our care for the planet to other people.

They can spread like a ripple effect to instigate collective action.

They send a market signal to businesses

and they can trigger broader structural institutional change.

So yes, we do need system change,

but we also need individual behavior change.

Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Alright.

Now I want to take you on a whirlwind tour

through some of my favorite happy climate actions.

Are you ready?

(Audience: Yes!)

Great.

Let's start with my pet bunny.

Since this is a year of the rabbit.

(Laughter)

A few years ago,

my partner and I adopted Greenwich.

(Laughter)

She's adorable.

She's also a vegan.

We have so many plants,

vegetables and fruits in our house, thanks to Greenwich.

And because of that,

I'm eating a lot more vegetables myself than I used to.

And I’m not kidding,

I'm feeling a lot happier.

Eating more plants can reduce agricultural emissions by up to 80 percent.

I guess that part you may have known before.

But do you also know that a plant-based diet can make you feel happier?

Decades of medical studies suggest

that a plant-based diet can increase both physical and mental health.

In a recent experiment,

researchers recruited people from North Dakota

who barely ate any vegetables.

And they fed these people a plant-based diet for two months.

These people, on this diet,

felt a lot happier at the end of two months,

than they did before they started the experiment.

So researchers think that this is because plants --

so fruits, vegetables --

are high in vitamins and phytochemicals

that provide both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits

to the brain and the body.

So the happy climate action here is eat more plants.

(Laughter)

But this does not mean never eat meat,

because I can tell you that deprivation is a disaster for happiness.

Instead, we should aim for the right balance

of meat and plants in our diet

that will make us maximally happy.

Now, as you're thinking about this diet and this balance,

understand that not all meat is created equal.

One kilogram of beef

emits about 100 kilograms of greenhouse gases.

That's roughly the same as driving 250 miles.

But other types of meat,

like fish, pork and poultry have a lot lower emissions.

But if you do want to eat beef,

here's the happy climate hack:

make it a treat.

One study shows that temporarily giving up something we enjoy

can actually renew our capacity to savor that thing when we have it again.

And that can increase our happiness.

And beyond food, we can turn other things into a treat as well,

like shopping.

Now you know that fast fashion has a huge climate impact.

So instead of shopping often,

make shopping a treat.

And here's the happy climate hack.

Jackets, jeans, shoes have a lot of greenhouse gas emissions.

So treating ourselves to high-quality versions of these products

that won't fall apart after a few wears is actually good for the planet.

Underwear, on the other hand, have pretty low emissions.

So, you know, please buy those whenever you need them.

(Laughter)

You're welcome.

(Laughter)

Now let's talk about waste.

Do you know that if your space is clean, zero-waste and organized,

you may feel happier?

Let's take a look at perhaps the messiest part of everybody's home:

the fridge.

Some environmental experts recommend that we put perishables into the drawers

and put the condiments at the door.

I hate to say this, but I disagree.

I don't think the fridge is designed with human behavior in mind.

We often forget about the things in the drawers, right,

out of sight, out of mind.

And that can lead to a lot of food waste and emissions.

So what's the happy climate action here?

Feng shui your fridge.

(Laughter)

This is how I feng shui-ed my fridge.

By moving the perishables to the door

and the condiments into the drawers,

so I can catch things before they rot.

(Laughter)

I also FIFOd my fridge, that is, “first in, first out,”

meaning, moving older items to the front of the fridge

so I don't forget about them.

This way you can have a zero-waste clean fridge

and you may feel happier.

Now beyond waste, we have to talk about travel.

And here's the happy climate hack.

Instead of saying "drive less,"

we should say “drive more ...

people."

(Laughter)

Yes.

Some studies suggest

that the more time we spend with our friends and family,

the happier we feel.

So what this means is that instead of driving alone in our car,

(Laughter)

we should drive our friends.

Because carpooling can turn those dreadful minutes behind the wheel

into joyful moments of socializing.

Or you can ditch the car altogether and bike.

(Laughter)

Better yet, bike with your bunny.

(Laughter)

Biking is virtually carbon-free.

And it also offers moderate exercise that activates our endocannabinoid system.

And that contributes to a sense of euphoria,

that's bikers high,

and greater mental well-being.

Now, we also know that flying is carbon intensive.

One round trip between Vancouver and New York

emits about half a ton of greenhouse gases.

That's equivalent to 400 chicken burgers.

That's a lot of burgers.

But what's exciting here is that there's a double happy climate hack here.

Ready?

First, bundle your trips.

This means combining multiple trips into one

by meeting up with friends and family

and maybe doing a little sightseeing in the region

to reap the happiness benefits of social connection.

I flew here to New York from Vancouver for this conference,

and I'm meeting up with my friends in New York to be happier.

Second, cutting out unnecessary flights

can contribute to a sense of time affluence

and that is a feeling that you have enough time

to do what you want to do.

Studies have shown that people who experience time affluence

tend to be happier

because [it] enhances our sense of mindfulness,

autonomy and connection to others.

In a recent study, people felt happier

when they made a time-saving purchase than a material purchase

because the time-saving purchase made them feel less stressed.

So before you book your next flight,

think about all the other trips you have to take in the future

and ask yourself whether you can bundle these flights

to save your future self some time.

Now, do you want to know the best part of this whole happy climate strategy?

It doesn't have to stay at the individual level.

We can actually call for happy climate policies that governments can enact

so that everyone can get a chance to take these happy climate actions.

Let me give you an example.

Cities should invest more in climate-friendly infrastructure

like bike lanes,

so more people get to bike.

Cities can also invest more in nature-based solutions,

like urban green spaces,

that not only help cool the city down during the summer,

but they also provide space to take a walk,

to meet your neighbors,

to walk your bunny,

and then you can feel happier.

In fact, some studies show that taking a walk in nature

makes people feel happier

than taking a walk on a city street.

I think you get the gist here.

And I encourage you to take a moment

and think about the actions you can take in your own life

that not only reduce emissions, but also can make yourself feel happier.

There's probably a lot of those in this sweet spot,

so please get creative,

because the bottom line is this:

we need to change the narrative on climate action.

We need to make climate action feel good because if we get this right,

our future will indeed be happy.

Thank you.

(Applause and cheers)