Mass
consumerism has become a global calamity. Last Spring, a garment
factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, collapsed killing hundreds of workers.
Forever 21 and Joe Fresh were among the clothing companies involved in
the poor factory conditions.
We live in a consumer nation. “Stuff”
seems to be our generation’s newest mantra, with each person in the U.S.
producing an estimated 4.5 pounds of garbage per day. That is twice the
amount that was produced 30 years ago. We are bombarded by hundreds to
thousands of advertisements per day ($435 billion is spent on
advertising worldwide annually,) which is blatantly intended to
influence people to continue consuming more and more things. From food
to clothing, to cosmetics and automobiles, we just can’t seem to get
enough material items to satisfy our ego desires.
The impact of this societal obsession is
vast, affecting the people and the planet at a disturbing rate. In the
past ten years alone, one third of the world’s natural resources have
been used up. This fact should raise the hair on anyone’s neck. In
addition to the environmental impact, mass consumption is affecting our
health as thousands of synthetic chemicals and materials are being
deposited in most of our food, clothes and cosmetics which can be linked
to the influx of health problems the population is currently facing.
The
Dhaka garment factory disaster was a wake-up call for many, forcing
people to question their role in the consumerism that is destroying the
planet.
The problem doesn’t seem to be getting
better either – last Spring more than 400 workers were killed and
thousands were seriously injured in the collapse of a garment factory in
Dhaka, Bangladesh. Dhaka is one of the poorest cities in the world,
which is why many of the top international retailers situate their
manufacturing headquarters there. The workers are paid practically
nothing to work in unsafe and inhumane work conditions. Joe Fresh, a
Canadian company, was one of the retailers employing a large portion of
the injured factory workers. Some of the other top sweatshop offenders
in North America today include Forever 21, The Gap, Levi Strauss, Nike,
and Guess, all which contribute to Canada’s annual $450 billion dollar
retail industry. That’s a lot of “stuff” being bought. Yet even after
devastating events such as the Dhaka factory collapse we continue to
feed and buy into a system that is not only enslaving the majority in a
debt paradigm, but it is also killing people and destroying our planet
subsequently.
By the same token, the meat industry is
among the largest carbon foot-print industries currently existing. The
United Nations reported that “the livestock sector is one of the two or
three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental
problems, including climate change, air and water pollution, land
degradation and biodiversity loss. The report estimates that livestock
accounts for 18 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions, significantly
more than transportation. Furthermore, we are losing hundreds of
thousands of acres of rainforest to make room for cattle grazing land.
Factory-farmed animals also generate about 500 million tons of manure a
year, a figure that jumped 60 percent between 1990 and 2008 and has
polluted 34,000 miles of rivers and 216,000 acres of lakes and
reservoirs throughout the country”(1.)
The
livestock sector is among the top contributors to our current
environmental crisis. We are loosing acres of ancient rain forest every
day to create more room for livestock grazing.
It is an alarming fact that the richest
20% in the world account for 86% of total private consumption of
material goods; the poorest 20% account for only 1.3% (5.) Something is
dreadfully wrong with this picture. It is evident that the mass
production and consumption of material goods is leading our planet
towards an unsustainable future.
These statistics can be overwhelming to
consider on such a mass scale, but it is important for everyone to be
aware of the personal and environmental impact we as a society are
making on the planet. However, it is also important to remember that
initial change starts with one person. The first step we must take to
inspire change involves becoming educated about the effects of mass
consumerism. Spreading awareness to family and friends can go a very
long way. Most people just don’t know the facts about what is happening
in our world, and it is as easy as sparking up a conversation around the
dinner table or at a coffee shop that could create a ripple effect of
change in your own circle. Secondly, it is crucial to evaluate your
personal choices in regards to your consumption of material goods.
Simple actions like buying bulk, using a water bottle, and recycling
have a profound green footprint over the course of a year. Finally,
switching to a balanced vegetarian diet will benefit both your personal
heath and the environment.
Perhaps the most important action we can
take, however, is to look inside ourselves. Ancient wisdom will tell
anyone that a life of material consumption will never lead to
fulfillment. The only true peace and enlightenment comes from within,
the understanding that we are part of the infinite and transcendent
creator love. The moment we stop buying into the corporate systems and
start embracing our true essence, the sooner we move towards our
evolutionary destiny as a collective.
REFERENCES:
1) http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/meat/review.pdf
2) http://newint.org/features/2006/11/01/facts/
3) http://www.storyofstuff.org/movies-all/story-of-stuff/
4)
http://www.facingthefuture.org/IssuesSolutions/ConsumptionEcologicalFootprint/ConsumptionFastFacts/
tabid/176/Default.aspx#.UhbKnxssmSp
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