Conscience

Now and then we get asked about our conscience to drive in a truck like this. It is a large vehicle as such it consumes a noticeable amount of fuel and converts it into CO2 and other gases. Sometimes we get asked about the fact, that driving off road and off tracks, we destroy the soil and nature.

So, here is our point of view on this topic.

Being able to travel the world and to travel in a vehicle like our Manitu is a privilege. Of that we are well aware and grateful. We travel the world to get to know the lands and people. We like to share our experiences, because we think that much of the harm in the world is done out of ignorance. If we can show people how beautiful the world is, how much there is to loose, we think we make a contribution. If we can show people that foreign people are different but neither fearsome or dangerous, but friendly and interesting then we think we can make an even bigger contribution.

But of course our vehicle still burns a lot of fuel. The truth is, when we started preparing our overland life the world was a different one. Discussions regarding climate change haven’t been this intensive. We have no idea if we would have started with this if things already had developed this far. If it were technical feasible to drive the world in an E-Truck we would do this transition. But for now a diesel powered truck is the only option.
Back then, selecting our truck, we had to decide between a model, with a simple, sturdy engine. Being able to run on all kind of diesel but with an out of date exhausts standard of EURO5 or even EURO3. Or we had the option to choose an up to date EURO6 engine, in the knowledge that there are many countries where the available diesel is of a quality which might destroy this engine.
We choose to drive a EURO6 engine anyway and go the extra length to find options to still be able to visit these countries where quality diesel is of low priority.

So let us do some comparisons:
If we would not live in a tiny home on wheels, we would live a normal live somewhere in Germany. Very likely still burning oil or gas for warm water and heating. We would drive around in our car. Maybe now an electric car. Consuming electricity for the car and the house. Electricity which by now is produced in Germany roughly by 50% CO2 neutral. The rest is still produced by coal, gas or oil and even still nuclear.
We would still try to fill our lives with more and more things. Necessary or not. All these things have to be manufactured, requiring resources and energy. All these things have to be delivered into our home, the one way or the other. Wrapped up in lots of plastic and other materials. We would still use a lot of kerosene traveling by plane to locations which in turn are very likely unable to accommodate us without damaging the environment in the process.

But we choose to live in our tiny home on wheels. Our energy is solar. We cook with solar. We heat with solar. Only if it gets really cold, we heat with a bit of our fuel from the truck. Our warm water is prepared by solar. Our stove, washing machine, laptop everything is powered by solar.
Our storage is very limited. So is the amount of stuff we own and buy. here is no DHL or Fedex guy who has to bring us more and more stuff. We have no television on board. Because the best entertainment is just outside.
We have always been cautious with producing waste. But now we have a very low profile, most of our waste is organic. This includes our wastewater.
Many places we leave behind cleaner than before, because we can not stand the trash! We use a plane only in case of an emergency. Because we bring our own home, we have no need for hotels, swimming pools or air conditioning.

Because we do not have all the numbers, we can’t do the math. But we have the very strong feeling that our ecological and our CO2 footprint is way smaller than for most people living in a „developed“ country. It is definitely smaller than it was before we moved into our tiny home on wheels.

So, what about the nature, we might damage while driving?
Maybe there is a misconception here. Mostly we drive on roads. Maybe not all of them are paved but a gravel road or a track is still a road. . So, why do we need such a sturdy, off-road capable vehicle? There are so many roads in the world which are in rough condition. Driving them in a regular camper would quickly cause an unscheduled disassembly.
Only sometimes we have to drive off the road in order to reach our destination. But we like to get to these locations because we love and care for nature. So we are well aware of the possible impact we make with our truck. We are careful in our choice where we drive and where we want to go.
But consider this:
If you walk across a meadow, you leave some footprints. In most cases this is of no further impact. If you are a group of people you already leave a small, visible track. After some days nature recovered and the track is no longer visible.
But have enough people cross the meadow you end up with a dirt track across the meadow. Nature requires quite some time to recover from this.
Driving with a car off the road is similar in this respect.
And we are again aware, that it is a privilege to go to places where not many others might go.