Consumerism and the chance of being reborn

From Mod Mania

Most of the time it can be difficult to express to people just how much we consume; particularly those of us in developed countries. While purchasing green this and environmentally-friendly products that are all well and good; one of the root causes of our environmental problems is our excessive amount of consumption. We simply buy too much of what we don't need and often even what we don't really want. So what do we do with that junk we never once used, those clothes we never once wore and those shoes which never got the chance to even come close to stepping in dog crap? Simple really, we chuck it! The aim of this discussion is to bring up the issue of how much we consume and that although a garbage bin might be close we have a choice to reuse some of these products, which ultimately will extend the product lifetime and make a far less impact on our global consumption waste scale.

First of all we need to understand why we consume. We consume basic items to simply stay alive such as food and water then on to the basic utilities such as gas, electricity but even though these are essential to life we will often forgo them to buy the latest gadget such as an IPod or a Playstation etc. Such is the power of advertising and peer pressure we actually see a tiny ipod or a Versace handbag as being more essential in our life than to pay the rent or the electricity bill .This would be ok if that IPod held the same importance to us for say 10 years we could accept the sacrifice but within a month or 2 of most purchases a new model or configuration will be put on the market rendering the one just purchased superseded and almost an embarrassment to be seen with so we will put the rent on hold to buy the new model then we will be satisfied till the next new model .

What makes a person want an IPod that is capable of holding 25000 songs? What makes a person trade in a perfectly safe and sound car fulfilling all the requirements needed for transportation on the new model? What makes a woman stop wearing an item of clothing that she adored last season? And what about mobile phones ??????????????????????????

Most people would say that they feel that all of the above examples of extravagance are unnecessary, wasteful and that it’s just a conspiracy by multinational companies and advertising agencies to rip us off. However, we need to look past the need or better yet, the basic needs of society with our insatiable appetite for new products and the waste that it generates. Consumerism needs to be encouraged, after all, its drives population’s economies, gives countries the chance to trade and cooperate as international partners and also it provides millions upon millions of people with jobs to buy the necessities of life. However, in saying that we need to be mindful about the issue of waste and that although the problem of waste might be out of our lives when we have discarded of it. The waste then becomes and issue for someone else.

We also need to consider that western economies thrive on consumerism. We all need to work and that mean providing a product or service that people need or want and are willing to pay for and that reflect technological advancement and interest to all age groups .Then so as to create a competitive market place so as too keep prices reasonable we need to be offering a range of models, colors, brands etc ranging in price so as to be affordable to all working classes. Then these products need to be manufactured, distributed, displayed, and then sold at a profit within a competitive retail marketplace and so the process goes on and on .Now not many products developed today have a very long lifespan in the marketplace either because of technological advancement or just because of what’s IN or what’s OUT .Take for instance the hills hoist , it was developed back in the 1950,s and still sells in virtually the same format as it what originally designed all that time ago because it meets the market and need perfectly .There has been examples over time of products that have been so well produced and manufactured that they have simply not been sustainable in the marketplace because they have not generated any sub industries for repair, upgrade or replacement .

So along with these presented facts , how do we now look at what might be considered waste .Waste needs to be produced as it’s essential to mankind’s survival economically ,socially and culturally we just need to know how to utilize it ,recycle it and protect our environment from it by managing it to benefit man and nature. But, is that issue a problem or another tear of consumerism as the market in recyclables and second hand products reconditioning, refurbishing also creates a lot of employment and a lot of incomes. However, although these processes can come at a cost, it is the importance of realising that reusing, reducing and recycling in the long run will reduce the rate of waste and most importantly the environmental impacts.

What’s one mans trash, is another mans treasure. The old saying, which even has the classic weekend markets name associated with it (trash ‘n’ treasure) is a perfect example of ones waste recycled to be used or seen as another’s treasure. Listed below are various products that have been reused, recycled and most importantly; the thought behind the concept and the value of extending the product lifetime and alternative use.

Got a few thousand spare compact discs lying around? Ever thought about what you could do with all those unwanted cd’s? Designer Belen Hermosa apparently had a few spare cd’s and a great idea and created this sleek and modern chair out of them. It’s hard to say whether or not the cd’s are new or used, but it does give an idea and explore the possibilities of reusing products, which most likely would be thrown away after sitting on the shelves collecting dust.

Well known designer ‘Castor’ has reused the common fluorescent bulb in this example. The dead bulbs, re-purposed to become the shade of a pair of incandescent light bulbs, have now become a warmer light source than its original in-carnation. Once again this is a prime example of using a product till it has passed its ‘ use by date ‘

Ree-store is doing a great job for the environment here as trolleys are generally ditched due to unaligned wheels or exposed wire. Once transformed by Ree-store they become beautiful yet functional, upright chairs. Some of the trolleys still have the logo from the shop it came from. The trolleys go for around £390 ( about $830 AUD ) which is quite high priced for restored trash which could be returned, however this is an excellent example of how simple and effective it can be turning rubbish into a fashionable home accessory.

Cardiff Bay Office Furniture will take responsibility of collecting and disposing of your Office Furniture. effectively what this does is ensure that around 95% of the used products owned by the company are refurbished and returned to the market place effectively at least doubling the lifetime usage of each product and therefore reducing the potential waste requirement by 95%.

Processes shown above are the critical movements needed for product lifetime enhancement. However, it is not to say that we as consumers should feel pity for ourselves every time we throw away goods that are old and broken, the question that we may like to ask ourselves is 'did I get what I wanted from that product' and most importantly ' was it necessesary '? A lot of the time we may think of throwing away something as a simple thing, and sure it is; but a lot of the time the process of breaking down, reproduction and even recycling the product can seem hardly worth throwing it away, when we as the owner of the product can easily reuse the product and even transform it into something new.

Although there are many ways the problem can be met with a variety of products, this is what keeps the rich and the working class chasing their tails financially. However, it is important to state that not everyone takes of advantage of the products and consumer goods that are available; and it doesn’t just stop at consumer products, it also contains the consumer good like food, water, power sources like electricity and gas and many more. In 2005, 20% of the globes wealthiest sections were responsible for 76.6% of the total consumption of products that are available, or better stated, products that are out there. With the poorest fifth of the population accounting for just 1.5%

Breaking that down slightly further, the poorest 10% accounted for just 0.5% and the wealthiest 10% accounted for 59% of all the consumption:

Consumption in the modern world is really taking a toll on our environmental resources. If these trends continue without change, today’s problems of consumption and even human development will worsen. Issues such as not redistributing from high-income to low-income consumers, not shifting from polluting to cleaner goods and production technologies, not promoting goods that empower poor producers, not shifting priority from consumption for conspicuous display to meeting basic needs are key aspects to the issue of over consuming and simple shifts in reducing can see the issue reduce dramatically. However, the real issue is not consumption itself, but the effects that it produces.

20% of the world’s people in the highest-income countries account for 86% of total private consumption expenditures, however when comparing 20% of the poorest countries which consume a minuscule 1.3%. 20% of the globes richest countries consume over 80% of the world resources where as the other 80% of the population consume less than 20%, obviously the statistics shown are seen as un-acceptable, but many of us are included into the 20% of over consumers. More specifically, the richest fifth:

• Consume 45% of all meat and fish, the poorest fifth 5%

• Consume 58% of total energy, the poorest fifth less than 4%

• Have 74% of all telephone lines, the poorest fifth 1.5%

• Consume 84% of all paper, the poorest fifth 1.1%

• Own 87% of the world’s vehicle fleet, the poorest fifth less than 1%

The excessive amounts of runaway growth in consumption in the past 50 years is putting strains on the environment which have never been seen before; so how can we change, and most importantly how can we reduce the impacts socially and environmentally?

What can we do? How can we protect our way of life yet protect the planet for future generation’s .Statistics from the U.K. : Households in the UK produce enough waste to fill the Albert Hall in London every two hours; every person in Britain throws out the equivalent of their own body weight in rubbish every seven weeks; around 60% of what we throw away could be recycled; 434 tones of rubbish in total reaches a landfill site each year.

This list of damning statistics relating to that nation’s rubbish habits goes on and on! So how do we start to reduce the staggering amount of waste we produce and throw away? Yes we could make it law to recycle but this only lays the blame and responsibility on the individual and I would think that our goals would be overflowing with inmates if this was the case. So we need to look at how to limit the amount of possible waste that will need to be disposed of in the household by an individual and that lays squarely in the hands of science and design.

Every product whether it be fresh food or machinery parts comes in some sort of packaging that is essential to a manufacturer setting his product or brand apart from the rest as well as being a means of transporting that product home by the purchaser. Once the product is removed from that packaging or container or bag it is of no good to anyone so generally goes in to the rubbish bins or recycle bin.

So we have 2 problems here to overcome 1: to preserve our lifestyle, and that means allowing everything that goes with the packaging (advertising, printing, manufacturers of all the containers etc) 2: the disposal of all this waste associated with it. This is where science comes into the proposed solution. I propose that we come up with a self disposing material that is like paper or cardboard that can satisfy all the requirement of the marketplace but have a mechanism that could be set off as soon as the packaging is not required .As an example you go into a store and buy the latest IPod it comes in a box that not only displays it but hold all the attachments that come with it, this box could possibly have a peel off tag that once removed would set in motion a chemical reaction that would break down the matter that the packaging is made from and it would turn into dust or matter that could be dug into the garden as fertilizer. This might sound unrealistic in its inception but what is does highlight is a solution is needed and the target is packaging and associated items. Perhaps a more realistic idea would be to put a price on packaging, which a product would be displayed in, but once purchased the customer would be offered the item at a lower price if they forgo the packaging and take the item home.

There are many questions I haven’t addressed through this discussion, many of which won’t be addressed for a very long time, but challenging some of the problems is what can give slight change to many of the waste, environmental and lifestyle issues which we as a globe have put a major strain on. Although many of the effects are seen as minimal, it is obviously the build up which has major effects; all we can do, is be conscious and mindful and consider the effects of which could potentially ruin the globe.

I myself have already began extending many products lifetimes. Many of us should give it a go and see where it takes us...