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    The enormity of the global climate crisis is so vast that individual actions may seem meaningless: can installing LED lighting in my home or keeping my car tires inflated really help save the polar bears? 

    First coined by Portland, Oregon-based writer Emma Pattee, the climate shadow aims to paint a picture of the full sum of one’s choices — and the impact they have on the planet. 

    In an article she wrote in 2021, Pattee detailed her concept for measuring an individual’s impact: “Your climate shadow is a dark shape stretching out behind you. Everywhere you go, it goes too, tallying not just your air conditioning use and the gas mileage of your car, but also how you vote, how many children you choose to have, where you work, how you invest your money, how much you talk about climate change, and whether your words amplify urgency, apathy, or denial.” The larger the shadow — the greater an individual’s impact on doing good for the planet.

    In other words, rather than incentivizing purely individual actions, your climate shadow grows when those actions inspire others, knowingly or otherwise. 

Kieran Mulvaney. Climate shadow is what really matters.

National Geographic (adapted).