Perspectives and Initiatives for Energy Efficiency and Combating Climate Change in Guanajuato, Mexico: A Report

We might pinpoint time and money as the root of the problem here in Guanajuato, the underlying reason that more is not done to initiate large-scale climate change mitigation efforts. For starters, three people I spoke to all emphasized to me that the city government officials here only remain in power for four to six years. During their time in office, they supposedly want to secure for themselves an excellent reputation in the eyes of their citizens. They want to get re-elected. This means making changes that take effect quickly and on large scales. Our planet’s climate crisis does not lend well to this pattern. Actions towards combating our climate problem naturally must start small and slowly accrue to have a long-term positive effect. And no governmental official wants to do just a little. Theoretically, they would not want to spend their time contributing to efforts that will take the equivalent of at least five or six of the time periods they could be in office to come to fruition. At the same time, any reason that there might not be sufficient funds within the government here to mandate large-scale climate-savvy action is difficult to justify when one receives information from people who have lived in Guanajuato all of their lives regarding excessively high salaries for government officials. Anita specifically mentioned that the government here also continues to send much money to retired governmental officials. The other, and arguably more legitimate side of the economic problem, has already been mentioned but resides in the fact that many citizens rely on the cheap energy the government currently provides and in a larger sense rely on the cheap(but often inefficient and dirty) provision of energy in all respects. Their concern for their own economic well-being naturally precedes that of the well-being of our planet.

So, what can we conclude from all of this? A number of things. The city of Guanajuato is not completely devoid of well-managed, properly guided initiatives to do its part, or what it can, to contribute towards the alleviation of our planet’s climate crisis. But it is not full of them either. The ones that exist range from mere suggestions or recommendations to hard governmental laws that threaten to punish businesses and individuals for insufficient consideration of the environment amidst their regular practices to recycling projects to reforestation efforts to predominantly privately lead alternative and clean energy initiatives. Some of Guanajuato’s own unique factors, principally economic, seem to have a great affect on climate change action, as we have already seen. From what I have gathered myself, there does seem to exist some sort of gap in between what the government says it supports and does, and what the citizens in the city observe the government doing. The governmental initiatives that do exist tend to be mostly geared to benefit a specifically Guanajuatan population, while the majority of globally-minded efforts in the city seem to come from individual, private efforts. These often take the form of simple action within people’s own homes, ranging from utilizing the bulgingly popular and more efficient compact-fluorescent light bulb, limited use of products made from non-renewable sources (plastic, styrofoam, etc.), keeping lights and other electrical devices turned off when not being used, use of public transportation and natural light, and more.