Ethical consumerism

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What communities can do

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• promote fair trade and become a fair trade community
• promote second hand, charity shops and Used book stores
• promote and take part in Buy Nothing Day and Buy Nothing Christmas
• buy recycled products
• organise a Carrotmob campaign
• find eco product supplies
• support or set up zero waste suppliers, eg see News item October 7, 2013, in right hand column
• support sustainable, green or eco-tourism initiatives
• practice event greening
• promote closer to home tourism
• lobby for Government action to enforce the use of bio-degradable plastic bags by supermarkets, or banning plastic bags altogether
• encourage the use of Reusable shopping bags

Campaigns

Fossil Free, a project of 350.org

Wake Up Call

Why it matters

ethical consumerism^W - buying things that are made ethically i.e. without harm to or exploitation of humans, animals or the natural environment. This generally entails favoring products and businesses that take account of the greater good in their operations. ^[1] An extension of the idea, doing more with less, overlaps with the first part of Reduce, reuse, repair and recycle.

Alternatives to mainstream economic concepts

Green movements, but also thinkers from other areas, are opposed to the focus put on economics. The need for terminology has created familiar ideas such as carrying-capacity, and ecological footprint. ^W

Degrowth

Degrowth is considered an essential economic strategy responding to the limits-to-growth dilemma. Degrowth thinkers and activists advocate for the downscaling of production and consumption—the contraction of economies—arguing that overconsumption lies at the root of long term environmental issues and social inequalities. Key to the concept of degrowth is that reducing consumption does not require individual martyring and a decrease in well-being. Rather, 'degrowthists' aim to maximize happiness and well-being through non-consumptive means—sharing work, consuming less, while devoting more time to art, music, family, culture and community. ^W

Post growth

Post-growth can be distinguished from similar movements (such as degrowth, steady state economics, post-materialism) in that it focuses on acknowledging, supporting and building on the sustainable initiatives, systems and products that are already in place. Post growth advocates try to encourage, connect and further develop these existing ideas and actions. In this way, "post growth" does not specify the answer to the limits-to-growth challenge, as “steady state economics” and “degrowth” do, but rather seek to understand and address this challenge from a complex systems perspective that is constantly evolving. With this holistic complex systems approach, post growth deals with all aspects of self and society (such as psychology, human nature, human evolution, cultures, social systems and economies) and the interrelation of all of these aspects. Accordingly, the post growth concept also advocates solutions that are appropriate with regards to place, time, resource and cultural factors. Therefore, post growth initiatives take shape in very different ways under different circumstances.

Post growth can be considered an asset-based approach to community development, applied not only to community development but across a wide range of categories and in response to limits-to-growth challenges, as it seeks to build on the cultural and technological assets that already exist and are facilitating the emergence of post growth futures. ^W

Sustainable consumption controversy

"Yet individual initiatives alone do not necessarily help to build strong, healthy communities (although they can free up time that could lead to greater community involvement), nor can they address the structural obstacles to genuine consumer choice the lack of organic produce in the supermarket, for instance. Some critics even argue that, pursued in isolation, individual initiatives can be counterproductive.

"An "individualization of responsibility", as political and environmental scientist Michael Maniates notes, distracts attention from the role that such institutions as business and government play in perpetuating unhealthy consumption. Moreover, to the extent that individuals see their power residing primarily in their pocketbooks, they may neglect their key roles as parents, educators, community members, and citizens in building a society of well-being." ^[2]

See also: Criticism (of Ethical consumersim)^W

Quotes

• "No political challenge can be met by shopping." George Monbiot ^[3]

• "Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people would choose the tableware." George Monbiot ^[4]

• “Anyone who believes in infinite growth on a finite planet is either mad or an economist.” D. Attenborough ^[5]

Resources

• Buy Nothing Day site through the Adbusters Media Foundation
• Buy Nothing Christmas, includes alternative gift ideas, for example a set of coupons to print and give to family members that include two free homemade desserts, three back massages, or an evening of child care.
• Consumer Resources for Buying Green Products on Green Wiki
• GoodGuide Transparency Toolbar
• 'Good Stuff? A Behind-the-Scenes Guide to the Things We Buy', March 2004, is a free online publication from the Worldwatch Institute. It traces what goes into the production, use, and disposal of 25 common consumer items, including compact discs, cell phones, baby goods, and chocolate, and sheds light on hidden impacts that consumers may be unaware of. For example, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that the air inside a typical U.S. home is on average 2-5 times more polluted than the air just outside - and in extreme cases can be 100 times more contaminated - largely because of the use of chemical cleaners and pesticides. Good Stuff is available via worldwatch.org where it can be downloaded for free.

Apps for sustainability

Slavery Footprint

Research

Ecotourism research, Griffith University

See also

• Ethical consumerism UK
• more local information can be found, or shared, via our many location pages
• Alternatives to plastic bags
• Ecotourism
• Fair trade
• Food, sustainable community action
• Green Christmas
• Greenwash
• Localism
• No such thing as waste
• Overview of eco-hostels
• Plastic bags
• Plastic bag programs
• Reduce, reuse, repair and recycle
• Sharing
• Travel choices
• Voluntary simplicity or simple living

Interwiki links

Wikipedia: Ethical consumerism, Anti-consumerism, Carrotmob, Degrowth, Eco hotel, Fair trade, Fair trade debate, Green brands, Green conventions, Greenwashing, Post growth, Second-hand shop, Sustainable tourism, Used bookstore, Volunteer travel

Greenwiki: Greenwash

SourceWatch: Greenwashing

External links

• Carrotmob, according to the website "We are not currently active, but feel free to learn about past campaigns or contact us!" (accessed 13 12 14)
• Consumers International, world federation of consumer groups, based in London, England. In campaigning for the rights of consumers across the world, CI seeks to hold corporations to account and acts as a global watchdog against any behaviour that threatens, ignores or abuses the principles of consumer protection. ^W
• Fairtrade International
• International Centre for Responsible Tourism
• International Ecotourism Society
• The Man in Seat Sixty-One, train travel guide
• Morsbags
• Planeta.com, think smart, travel slow
• Sustainable Travel International

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