I’ve always liked animals and nature but I didn’t really consider myself an environmentalist until I went to uni and went veggie, which started as a moral concern but became environmental. It sounds like a cliche, but it was David Attenborough’s The Blue Planet that really spurred me on: I made a petition on Change.org about plastic cutlery and it got 150,000 signatures, which inspired me to do my master’s in environment, politics and society at UCL.
I’m a project coordinator at an environmental charity called Hubbub. We try to inspire greener ways of living: our motto is anyone can be an environmentalist whether they know it or not. There’s a perception of environmentalists as quite finger-waggy, but Hubbub is all about making funny, easily accessible campaigns that usually have a cost-saving element to them, or a mental and physical health benefit.
We all know we need to shift to electric vehicles (EVs): it’s just one of the many measures that must happen in the very near future if we want to keep [limiting global warming to] 1.5 [degrees C] alive. They won’t solve all our ills by themselves, but it’s something we have to do alongside car sharing, higher-speed rail networks, more accessible public transport: we have to adopt multiple options, and electric vehicles are a huge one. It’s not just the fact they produce zero driving emissions. Noise pollution is a big issue in city centres. It has negative effects that people don’t even think of, from stress to hearing loss, and because electric vehicles are so quiet they are hugely beneficial in that respect.
I’ve always wanted an EV, but have been put off by the fact I don’t have off-road parking – I’d assumed you always had to charge them overnight – and because I didn’t really know where to start with all the electric brands. It always felt like something I’d get around to soon, but not right now.
I go into the office by public transport: living in London, it’s what works for me, although I realise a lot of people need to drive to work. But my partner and I love to drive out to the countryside at weekends: we’re National Trust members and we’re lucky enough to live in a bit of west London where it’s easy to get out of the city.
I love a UK road trip: you can just chuck everything in the boot and be off straight away, you don’t have to really plan ahead or faff around with airports, we can just pop our dog Moochie in the boot, you’re comfortable, you’ve got your own music, and I love to settle in to a good long podcast series. We often drive to Dorset where my partner’s from. We’ve driven up to Scotland a few times, and went to the Cotswolds for a week right after our wedding last year.
It was incredible taking the BMW i4 eDrive40 M Sport out to the country. It’s so smooth and comfortable to drive, and I felt more than confident behind the wheel.
The electronic dashboard made the whole process so much easier, especially the fact that it’s curved towards you, which makes it really easy to see. There’s even a mini version of the satnav projected on to the driver’s windshield, which is just incredible. And you can use the Hey BMW voice assistant to operate everything without even having to look away from the road.
I love how everything’s connected up so easily: just press the screen twice and it brings up a map and list of nearby charge points. You could even find them in the middle of the country, in places such as pub car parks, far more than I was expecting – I found one at a nearby college.
The i4 is also quicker to charge, with a greater battery range, than I was expecting – more than 200 miles off 80% battery – so I wouldn’t need to plug it in at home every night. The range extends up to an impressive 365 miles* when fully charged.
When it comes to electric cars, there are a lot of unfamiliar brands. But BMW is a really premium German brand, and the i4 is a really cool car: easy to use, incredibly comfortable, and high performance. If we’re going to get people to shift to EVs we need more options like this on the market.
I love the fact the BMW i4 is manufactured in hydroelectric-powered plants, because you not only need to think about the emissions from a car when it charges or runs, but also about the emissions while they are being manufactured. So reducing the overall impact they have on the environment is another win.
The fact the i4 is entirely electric also makes me more willing to use all the features, for instance, the i4 can be preconditioned before you get in using power from the battery, ensuring it isn’t drained by heating and warming the cabin during the journey. It’s a great way to make the car comfortable from the moment you are seated.
It was amazing to take it out into the country – connecting to nature has huge benefits to our health but it’s also a reminder of what we’re trying to look after, seeing beautiful landscapes, rolling hills, lambs and cows – it’s what you’re trying to protect. I find that inspiring, and doing it in an EV was even more so. This was a real glimpse into the future.
Kirstie Brittain-McVey is a model and environmentalist.
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* These figures were obtained after the battery had been fully charged. The i4 is a battery electric vehicle requiring mains electricity for charging. Figures shown are for comparability purposes. Only compare electric range figures with other cars tested to the same technical procedures. These figures may not reflect real life driving results, which will depend upon a number of factors including the starting charge of the battery, accessories fitted (post-registration), variations in weather, driving styles and vehicle load.
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