Nowadays, when we consume a product or service, we can adopt 2 different attitudes:
should we be concerned about the sustainability and responsibility of the product we are offered, or do we not care? When we speak of sustainability and responsibility, we instinctively think of the fight against climate change, but these notions also deal with other issues, such as respect for the social conditions of the people who work to provide these products, for example. While the fight against
climate change is a particularly important issue for young people, older generations don't necessarily feel as concerned by this major problem. So let's take a look at why and how it's possible to consume sustainable, responsible products, especially for adults.
When we talk about consuming responsible, sustainable products, we often think first and foremost of local, short-distance products. For example, ideally, we should only buy products that have been produced close to where we live, whenever possible. If we eat fruit from the other side of the world, for example, the carbon impact of transport is extremely high. Transport is the world's
2nd biggest CO2 emitter (22%). To avoid this, it's essential to eat seasonal produce! So eating locally has a considerable impact on the fight against climate change.
On the other hand, it should be point out that the consumption of sustainable and responsible products is often synonymous with good health for the consumer. If we take the example of seasonal produce, these products are, as a general rule, less exposed to pesticides and therefore better for the health when consumed. Needless to say, the taste experience is often much better with local
produce.
Consuming responsible, sustainable products also offers real added value for farmers and local
producers in general. Their products will be more widely consumed, so they'll generate more income and be able to produce even more, and better-quality, products. On the other hand, by not favoring
multinationals, we don't promote a labor model that often fails to respect workers' rights, and makes them work in disastrous conditions.
One of the major and often non-negligible barriers to consuming sustainable and responsible products is price. It's true that it's generally more expensive to shop exclusively for local, responsible products than to buy products from all over the world. Indeed, the social and environmental dumping practised by multinationals enables them to sell their products at often unbeatable prices.
In view of this phenomenon, it can be difficult to ask a family on a modest income not to turn to these very cheap products.
So, to deal with this problem, we might need to rethink society from top to bottom. In recent years, the consumer society has undergone an exceptional boom. With the multitude of advertisements,
we see on a daily basis, we are driven to consume more and more, of products we often have no use for. This consumption is obviously encouraged by the use and growth of the Internet. Amazon, for example, is the perfect example of this society, where we can have access to products in just a few hours, for very low prices. In addition to the significant environmental problem posed by this platform, we also know that the working conditions of this multinational's employees are disastrous.
In an ideal world, we would consume only the products we really need, or less essential products in limited quantities. The result would be a gain in money, since we wouldn't be spending so much on superfluous things. With the money we save, we'll be able to buy products that are a little more expensive, but of better quality and, above all, sustainable.
Arthur Berchet.
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