Emissions of the Lowest Acceptable Standard of Living

It is clear that our consumption leads to irreversible harm to our world. In this blog post I'll estimate the emissions for a person that lives on subsistence.

Merriam-Webster defines subsistence as

Another definition would be: The lowest standard of living any human being should have.

For Sweden, I've found two sources: The Enforcement Agency (Kronofogden) and The National Board for Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen). For simplicity, I'll follow the calculator from Socialstyrelsen that indicates whether one can qualify for subsidence support.

The subsistence consists of two parts:
  • Personal expenses for the individual, for example food and clothes.
  • Shared common expenses for the household, for example utility bills and newspapers.
I'll calculate the levels for a single adult.

Living: The guideline from Socialstyrelsen is one bedroom, one kitchen and one livingroom - roughly 60 square meters.
Electricity 1500 kWh per year

Monthly Personal Expenses - €410, in the following categories:
  • Media: €50 - subscription of a local newspaper and a book once in a while
  • Food €170 per month - A weekly menu with three servings of chicken, four servings of cod, two servings of halloumi and four vegetarian servings. Oatmeal porridge for breakfast
  • Clothes €40 - one sweater, or a pair of pants, or a half dozen of underwear.
  • 20 - buying a cheap smartphone every second year and having a low cost subscription
  • 50 SEK - buying one bottle of schampoo or toothpaste every month

The lowest acceptable living standard of any human being in Sweden exceeds by far the highest emission levels according that comply with the 1.5C target, according to the IPCC. 

Does this mean that IPCC are too aggressive with their targets? No, we need to reach net-zero emissions and stop increasing the CO2e levels in the atmosphere now. (ASAP is too slow and failing can't be an option.

Should I aim for a below-subsidence lifestyle? No, it is an important target that you can lead a life on an acceptable standard. Especially with children. 

What should I do? I'll aim for personal emissions between 50% and 75% of the Swedish average. The latest numbers I have from SCB (Statistics Sweden) indicates an average of 5.4 tonnes per person of emissions. Thus, my target will be between 2.7 and 4 tonnes of CO2e. 

If you think that number is too high and that my ambition is too relaxed, you can reduce my target by reducing the average emission levels in Sweden.


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