Beyond Conscious Consumerism

Conscious consumption is shopping - but in a way that is a whole lot kinder to our planet, because it's about looking beyond the price tag and caring for the environment. By being conscious about what you purchase, you avoid feeding into unethical business practices and being victims of harmful ingredients.

However, conscious consumers shouldn’t feel like the burden of saving the world rests solely on their shoulders. Oftentimes, it can get overwhelming because every purchase we make is impactful in some ways or the other on the environment.

Furthermore, being green isn’t cheap. In general, sustainable procedures for growing and producing eco-friendly products are costly, so making products that have minimal impact on the environment is no easy task, to say the least. From organic farming practices to acquiring certifications, it’s a long and challenging process – and yet that’s exactly what makes truly green products so sought after.

Note that our eco-friendly lifestyle choices alone cannot change the world. The ecological footprint changes only slightly even when consumers put effort into making environmentally conscious decisions.

The good news is that there are ways beyond individual conscious consumerism to push for a better world.

Community action
 is the way to go

A significant change through collective action.

Support organizations that push for policy changes that fight for the preservation of our planet Earth. You can also volunteer in your community to broaden your impact as an individual. Whether it's taking public transportation to meet your date or picking up rubbish on the beach with a group of friends, you and like-minded individuals are channelling your time and energy towards making environmentally friendly decisions, and therefore, creating a better world!

Plus, we can have greater change by embracing teamwork. Everyone plays an important role and can invest insights to achieve meaningful progress.

Let go of instant gratification

Practice slow beauty and resist impulsive habits.

We need to stop looking for immediate solutions to problems. Like how a single workout won’t immediately tone your abs, we can’t expect our life to get better all at once through short-cuts. Instead, slow your pace down and become more appreciative of your surroundings. You’ll see that in return, you’ll grow into becoming much happier as a person!

Why not start by enjoying home-cooked meals? You have full control over the cooking process and ingredients that go into your dish – selecting organic and ethically grown products not only benefits your diet and health, you are also helping the environment by not using any take-out containers or bags. It’s a double win!

But don't forget to do your research

Don't judge a product only by its appearance!

Of course, all this talk doesn’t mean that we should altogether avoid buying nice things for ourselves. However, learn to be critical from the very first step. Take time to research a brand’s philosophy, their sourcing practices, and most importantly, the alleged benefits that the ingredients claim to do for your skin! By becoming more responsible people, we can avoid falling victims to greenwashing companies, whose actions hardly have any environmental benefits.

We believe in conscious consumerism and slowing down to better appreciate life and beauty. Life, after all, is too precious to be wasted. What do you think?


Sources:  

  1. Cat. (2018, October 14). Hey conscious consumer! It's not up to just you to save the world. Retrieved from https://www.restitchstance.com/activism-beyond-conscious-consumerism/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_smartloop&utm_content=smartloop&utm_term=11234250
  2. Naruseviciute, G., Whybrow, S., Macdiarmid, J. I., & McNeill, G. (2015). Is "home cooked" healthier and cheaper than ready meals? The Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 74, 1. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.cityu.edu.hk/10.1017/S0029665115001056
  3. The ecological footprint of green and brown consumers ... Retrieved from http://www.erscp2012.eu/upload/doc/ERSCP_Full_Papers/CsutoraM_The_ecological_footprint_of_green_and_brown_consumers.pdf
  4. Wicker, A. (2017, March 7). Conscious consumerism is a lie. Here's a better way to help save the world. Retrieved from https://qz.com/920561/conscious-consumerism-is-a-lie-heres-a-better-way-to-help-save-the-world/
  5. Why are eco-friendly products so damn expensive ... Retrieved from https://www.seastainable.co/blogs/seastainable-blog/why-are-eco-friendly-products-so-damn-expensive
  6. @wwf. (2018, July 12). The importance of collective action. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@WWF/the-importance-of-collective-action-61c928da15f7

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