Like pretty much the rest of the female population, I’ve been mildly obsessed with Leonardo DiCaprio ever since he set sail on the Titanic. Typically speaking, I’d be willing to advocate anything he wishes to support vocally. Naturally, I was intrigued to see his participation in the “People’s Climate March” in New York City and his subsequent address to the United Nations.
There seems to be a surge in celebrities’ using their fame to voice their opinion about subjects that actually matter: Emma Watson with her speech about feminism, Victoria Beckham with her HIV/AIDS campaign and DiCaprio with the climate. I think it is a brilliant way to raise awareness for causes, and I applaud these celebrities for doing so. DiCaprio’s speech was quite a remarkable performance, and one that at least deserves an Oscar, especially because of the hypocrisy that lies throughout.
The 39-year-old, who was sporting a beard and ponytail that one can only hope was for an upcoming movie, spoke vehemently about lowering carbon emissions and eliminating government subsidies for oil, coal and gas companies. He’s completely right, but can we really respect him as an environmental role model?
DiCaprio owns at least four homes, took a private jet to New York, arrived at the rally in a limo and likes to party on an eight-story, 500-foot-long yacht that he rents from an oil-soaked billionaire. The Mail Online reported that DiCaprio has taken at least 20 trips across the nation and around the world this year alone—including numerous flights on his private jet from New York to Los Angeles and back, a ski vacation to the French Alps, another vacation to the French Riviera, flights to London and Tokyo, two trips to Miami and a trip to Brazil to watch the World Cup.
Sure, he does make some attempt at a green lifestyle. His $4 million apartment is located in an eco-friendly apartment building in Battery Park City. He drives electric sports cars and has occasionally been spotted riding a bike around New York. He has also had his own environmental foundation since 1998. Despite this, his fuel-filled air travel places him among the most serious environmental sinners out there.
The New York Times published an opinion piece, “Your biggest carbon sin may be air travel” in 2013, which detailed how flight dramatically contributes to carbon emissions and ozone depletion.
DiCaprio firmly promotes the idea that the great polluters of the Earth are fossil fuel companies led by people who are motivated solely by greed. That belief, however, can be misleading because although that industry may be everything he says it is, we are the ultimate polluters. We are the ones creating the demand for the goods and services invented, manufactured and transported by the use of fossil fuels. More specifically the industry to which DiCaprio owes his fame is dedicated to conspicuous consumption, from the designer gowns and jewelry they constantly promote on the red carpets of the world to the countless product placements in endless movies encouraging us to spend money.
So as he tries to strike a balance between his celebrity lifestyle and fight for a global cause, we have to wonder if Leonardo DiCaprio is really a hero or a hypocrite when it comes to climate change.
