The Importance of Air Conditioning in Cultural Energy Transition

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CNN's John Sutter talks about the importance of air conditioning. He says 9% of humanity live in areas where they can't survive for more than six hours without it. Air conditioners generate 35 human energy potentials per hour, he says. "We kind of emotionally take it for granted because a lot of people listening to this show have access to air conditioning"

On this steamy Frankly, Nate shares how his broken office air conditioner reminds him of the discomforts and dangers being faced by those living in high heat regions - including the heat dome over the Southern U.S and growing ‘wet bulb temperature’ areas around the world. Air conditioners are a modern luxury not afforded to most humans - and those that do use them are in turn part of a positive feedback loop to stay cooler while consuming more fossil energy. And yet as the climate gets hotter and hotter, climate control may shift from a luxury to a necessity for many people to even survive in parts of Earth’s habitat. Can those of us with access to AC - at least as a first step - become more aware of the energy privileges we have? How will we respond in a future with less access to climate control and increasing periods of extreme heat?

To watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/UWyoPzTpJtA

For Show Notes and More: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/36-cool-privilege