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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 bookstores
  • 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
  • encourage use and appreciation of local and Community resources

Campaigns

Fossil Free, a project of 350.org

Wake Up Call

Why it matters

ethical consumerismW - 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.

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.
  • Plastic Free Living from Plastic Free July

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Slavery Footprint Earth Accounting

Infographics

Technology Used to Protect Our Planet from consumerprotect.com

Research

Ecotourism research, Griffith University

Video

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See also

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



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