An article I published in The New Wolf in July 2011:
“Green
is the New Black” reads a t-shirt made of bamboo that I own. It
epitomises the shift industries are making towards sustainable products
to follow the green trend. There is a high demand for green products and
therefore a financial incentive for businesses to go green. It is a
decision taken on principle: the maximisation of profit. Companies are
not investing enough in long-term sustainability. Rather than making
potentially risky investments, they are making cut-backs and savings to
stabilise their short-term futures. Consumers mostly want immediate
benefits out of their purchases because today’s struggling economy
forces many of them to simply survive, and companies are (of necessity)
servile to this demand. Most consumers prioritise spending little over
spending ethically: they cannot always afford the immediate costs of
investing substantially in sustainable products like renewable energy
sources. Organic food and recycled clothes are popular green products
though because they are relatively cheap and have the instant feel-good
factor. Contemporary Western society revolves around immediate results,
explaining why the internet, crash diets, fast transport and disposable
products are becoming the hallmarks of the present age.
Making
a true and lasting difference to global consumption is onerous as it
involves making long-term investments that require short-term
sacrifices. The Centre for Alternative Technology is promoting a Zero
Carbon Britain (ZCB) Day on July 16th. Their aim is to make
Britain carbon-free by 2030. ZCB Day encourages everyone to live totally
carbon-free for the day, as well as to consider the long-term measures
they and the nation can take to reach the zero carbon goal by 2030.
Our
attempts so far to consume more sustainably are not effective enough.
By looking for quick fixes to the multifaceted issue of climate change
we risk cutting corners and provoking further predicaments for
ourselves.
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