This is a human- based cost of living basket with a hierarchy of human need. So i will set it out on that basis. For instance the hierarchy of need might start with Water, Food, Clothing, Shelter / Housing etc
And then I will additionally look into those costs of living which are forced upon us by top down policy, for instance mass personal car transport or digital dependency
The debate around #costofliving has really got my goat! Last year I was invited by a rather mysterious podcast to discuss the cost of living. Unfortunately I had to decline when they wouldn’t tell me who funded them. Although it wasn’t an area of research i had focused on, it had cropped up in other research on #carfree#lowcarbonlifestyles and more recently #resistingai
What annoys me about the current framing of the cost of living debate:
1. The false dichotomy between low carbon, net zero ambitions and low cost of living policies. These are clearly not opposite ideas or mutually exclusive policies
2. The superficial framing of what cost of living actually is from top down think tanks and spin doctors. We need to include the whole basket and cross reference with the high cost of environmental harms on home insurance, food security, housing, utility bills etc Example my home insurance has risen from £17 to £36 per month in four years despite making no claims. I am paying for the impact of climate related storms, flooding, wildfires experienced by other people in the UK and across the world.
3. What is and has become obligate. I have personally bypassed owning and running a car and using AI. But obligate means to force or make someone do something or to constrain, and i acknowledge if it is dangerous , feels unsafe or uncomfortable to walk and cycle (cheapest) in your area, you can be forced to buy, rent or run a car. I’ve probably saved at least £300,000 by not owning or driving cars over my lifetime (i’m 64) The same goes with being forced or coerced to have broadband (mine has risen from £19 to £37 per month in 3 years) or needing a smart phone to access basic services and social activities. The same with accessing television. Only digital radio remains free if you buy a digital radio.
4. The hierarchy of need. For people on the lowest incomes (or even on good incomes) the cost of housing, food, water, heating and cooking energy needs, washing, washing up and washing clothes or transport for work and a good social life are not negotiable
5. How #AI has rapidly increased utility bills for ordinary people by rapidly increasing demand for water, energy and i guess broadband?
Anyway this is just an opener. Please get in touch to discuss further…
