As we set out on this expedition to Antarctica, I’m inclined to contemplate some dilemmas that arise from our choices to do this. It’s a rare and unique and very expensive undertaking. It definitely has a considerable environmental impact. And it’s arguably self-serving. So what can I learn from this experience?
Our round trip air travel from Seattle to Auckland, plus a few domestic flights within New Zealand and Australia will be responsible for producing about 10 tons of carbon dioxide. Our atmosphere is already overloaded with 395 parts per million CO2, the highest level for over 800,000 years.
To give some perspective, if we were to stay home and used electricity and propane at our usual rate, it would take about six years to add that much carbon dioxide to the air. So while I think it is important for our species to reduce the amount of jet fuel we burn by flying all over the world, my belief has not restrained us from choosing to make this trip. My desires for adventure travel are inexhaustible and I don’t see putting an end to them any time soon—as long as Cynthia and I are still fit enough for travel.
This dilemma motivates me to share as much of our experience as possible—if we’re going to go anyway, perhaps there is an opportunity to share some of our observations of wildlife and habitats and environmental changes in this remote region of the world. And describing our interactions with friends we make along the way probably adds incrementally to the world’s store of goodwill.
Another important opportunity in international travel is to learn, and share some of the ways other countries deal with social and economic issues. Maybe we Americans can learn something useful. Staying with families enrolled in the Servas program has been particularly valuable for discussing issues common to New Zealanders and Americans. In New Zealand, the disparity between rich and poor is far less than in the U.S. You don’t see homeless people on the streets of the cities. The percentage of children living in poverty in New Zealand is 12% compared with the U.S. at 23% (UNICEF). New Zealand has one of the most comprehensive welfare systems in the world.
When we brought up the subject of guns, our New Zealand hosts were aghast with U.S. policies (or rather, lack of policies) about gun control. They really cannot fathom why Americans choose to have a society so awash with easily accessible guns. We really didn’t have a coherent answer for them as to why this is so.
Environmental consciousness in New Zealand is well established in society. Everywhere you go, you see businesses that embrace green policies, from energy conservation to minimizing air, water and land pollution, to recycling and reusing materials. I get the impression that this is partly due to the synergism between Anglo and Maori cultures. The Maori have a deeply spiritual connection with nature and the Maori culture continues to have an important respected place in society.
It feels important to have this firsthand experience of life outside the United States, even if it is costly in terms of environmental impact.
David