As I stated, flying is the worst way of polluting. Because CO2 is released at high quote it is even worse for the environment. http://www.davidsuzuki.org/issues/climate-change/science/climate-change-basics/air-travel-and-climate-change/

Carbon offsetting has been criticized for being a very ineffective way of reducing global emissions. Only 30% of all the money we invest in carbon offsetting actually goes to the projects.

http://www.carbonretirement.com/project-offsetting-costs

Projects that include tree-planting may actually be counter-productive for climate.

Calculating the economic impact of a ton of CO2 as 12$ as MacAskill does means buying in the argument that climate change could be simply solved with sound economic choices.

Unfortunately, resources are limited and infinite growth is not possible.
I think by putting human health before sustainability you are failing to see the greater picture. Once resources such cultivable land or fresh water will be exausted human life will not be possible for huge parts of the world population. Their health will not be a problem anymore.

Thanks for the clarification.

Yes – his website certainly gives off a bad impression!

Here’s what I know:
* I’ve briefly read the advice on freelancing, and I think the content of what he says is reasonable.
* I’ve also had positive recommendations for him from people I trust and I have sent other people to check him out, and they’ve generally thought at least some of his ideas were helpful.
* He’s extremely popular (though obviously he’s got a cult of personality going, so that should be discounted)
* I’ve read his book on financial advice, and I thought some of the tips were useful and novel (and I’m pretty organised when it comes to that stuff).
* I’m not currently aware of anything obviously better.

However, we haven’t “seriously examined” it. It’s more “among the most useful things I’m currently aware of without putting much effort into looking”. I hope it’s clear from the context that it’s not a thoroughly considered recommendation, but I should have made it even clearer.

Hey Tommaso,

It’s true you can cause some harm through the carbon emissions of flying. We all cause some harm through our emissions, whether by heating our homes, driving to work, or even breathing. The key question is whether the benefit you do from flying is much larger than the costs of the carbon emissions.

If you were just flying to Thailand for a holiday, then it might be harder to defend, but if you go to Thailand to save money, so you can contribute more to an effective charity or invest more in education, then I think it’s easily worth it. Indeed, you could offset the emissions from the flight for a couple of dollars donated to Cool Earth:
https://www.givingwhatwecan.org/research/charities-area/climate-change

Check out this article in Qz.com by our co-founder, which expands on these issues:
http://qz.com/131024/its-ok-to-have-a-big-carbon-footprint-and-pay-others-not-to/

Ok thanks!

My impression is yes, especially in the South East Asian places. You can meet people by visiting the recommended co-working spaces on NomadList.