Flying is just one of many examples of excesses from which the wealthy benefit at the expense of the most vulnerable. Fortunately, travelling doesn’t need to be put on hold until green aviation comes along. Given the acute need to tackle the climate crisis, and the ability to increase rail capacity using existing technologies and adding to existing infrastructure, train travel requires greater investment and support. Until then, and even in geographies where there are no sustainable travel options, flying must remain a luxury we forgo if we are serious about doing our part to tackle the climate crisis.

The Banality of Evil is a phrase coined by Hannah Arendt, one of the most influential political philosophers and historians of the 20th century. Arendt argues that Adolf Eichmann, a key figure in the Nazi Party and participant in enabling the Holocaust, was not psychotic or particularly anti-semitic in his personal beliefs.If the empirical claim that many meat eaters know that animal agriculture is unethical but fail to become vegan due to weak appeals to culture, comfort and convenience, those who eat meat should be seen through the same lens as those who participated in the Holocaust without any particular ideological motivation.

According to Singer, each individual should donate as much money as they can. This framework has important repercussions for the climate movement. In practice, this means that an individual should not only reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to the level of their fair share, but rather to the lowest possible level without causing a morally significant loss to their own standard of living.

"Who is sustainability for?" is a great question, but I am consistently disappointed with the answers from academics and activists alike. Environmental, ethical consideration has already been extended to individuals without regard for geography, sex, race and age and should now be extended to all sentient beings regardless of species.

When thinking about the actions necessary to limit the disastrous effects of climate change, few things come to mind before electric cars. By focusing on tailpipe emissions and marketing electric vehicles as environmentally friendly, electric car companies have convinced individuals that car dependency is okay, so long as the vehicles are not (directly) powered by fossil fuels.

Cars are terrible. They are loud, dangerous, expensive, take up far too much space, are socially inequitable, and damage our health and environment. Yes, even the electric ones. Car dependency is an urban planning choice. Ultimately, individuals will make environmentally harmful transportation choices so long as the infrastructure around them supports harmful transportation as the most convenient.

The 2022 United Nations Emissions Gap Report states that “there is no credible pathway to 1.5°C in place.” Each individual must have an equal right to use an equal share of resources and contribute their share of pollution if we are to create a just society. The actions needed might seem like drastic action but is insignificant when these actions hinder lifting billions out of poverty and suffering in a sustainable manner.

2022 has been an eventful year filled with learning. For me, 2022 has been shaped around two main events: full-time work and full-time university. The obvious question is: why would I subject myself to this?

Agriculture can be a powerful force for good. It alleviates hunger, provides jobs and allows for productive, healthy individuals and societies. Despite the positives it brings, agriculture also undeniably negatively affects the planet. The challenge is to reduce this impact to the minimum possible whilst meeting nutritional demands sustainably and equitably.

Traditional hotels can be expensive, and unreliable, negatively affect local residents and can have a significant impact on the urban environment. CityHub aims to solve these issues. Whilst we might not always stay in a pod, we will be returning to CityHub for many of our shorter stay journeys where we want to save money whilst enjoying the beautiful cities where CityHub exists.

Climate change exists and is being accelerated by human activities. To deny this is to create and enable a system where politics creates reality rather than a system where politics is guided by reality. A lack of care towards the biosphere upon which all socio-economic systems inherently rely is already shaping policy.

The legal end goal of veganism is to make illegal practices which unnecessarily harm, exploit and kill sentient, non-human animals. Where vegan alternatives are available, this is almost always an ‘opt-in’ system. By switching the standard option to vegan meals, the standard benefits animal liberation, health, the environment, costs and inclusivity.

The automobile has long symbolised freedom and individuality. Cars are advertised as the rejection of reliance on others, allowing an individual to go where they want to, when they want to. Society must combat this by showing the realities that car-centric design reinforces: inequality, discrimination, higher taxes and environmental catastrophes. We must turn away from the automobile and embrace the freedom gained in doing so.

The belief in animal liberation is the lowest common denominator that all vegans share. Yet rather than coming together to advance the political objective of animal liberation, vegans spend far too much time arguing about philosophical nuances which are irrelevant to the cause. Vegans must argue for veganism itself, rather than for veganism backed by a particular normative or meta-ethical theory.

Your genetics and your socio-economic background are nothing more than chance. You might be a privileged person or an oppressed person. Your task is to distribute resources in a way so that you would be happy to born as anyone in the world. There is possibility that we are born as a different species and it is therefore our obligation to defend their rights.

Speciesism is a word which has only recently entered mainstream ethical discussions. Speciesism is the philosophical belief that humans are inherently superior to non-human animals. The eradication of philosophical speciesism is a natural extension from the eradication of other social ills such as racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia. Both the theoretical and practical eradication of speciesism can be found in veganism.

Electric cars have been marketed as the solution to the climate crisis. Although electric cars certainly have a role to play in the future of mobility, simply replacing combustion engines and petrol tanks with electric motors and lithium-ion batteries is not going to fix the climate crisis.

In reality, electric cars represent the idea of an environmental future where more energy can be consumed without destroying the planet so long as it comes from renewable sources. This view is far too simplistic and looks towards future solutions, which may or may not be realised, to solve issues we are facing today.

The Philippines presidential elections are currently underway with Ferdinand ‘Bong Bong’ Marcos Jr. all but certain to win the nation’s 17th presidential election. This should not come as a surprise for three main reason. Firstly because Marcos Jr.’s election follows 6 years of strongman Rodrigo Duterte’s rule, secondly, that the People Power Revolution failed to create a well functioning state and finally because the Filipino media landscape has helped to create neurosis on a societal level by distorting the concept of truth.

Poor organisation, incomplete reading lists, disinterested lecturers, lazy group members, mandatory in-person seminars clearly designed to tick a box and exams consisting of glorified reading comprehension - multiple choice questions which fail to test the key ideas discussed in the course. Fortunately, the Business, Politics and Culture (BPC) course proved that there is a better way to run a course without mandating any significant changes.

Grappling with death can lead to a paralysis in which one fails to take any action. However, this realisation should be empowering. It is this stress which can so easily debilitate which also forces us to act. In order to live a meaningful life, one must be aware of these truths and risk falling into crisis. Without death there is no need for action and without a need for action one cannot live a meaningful life. The prospect of dying will continue to breathe meaning into our every action.