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How do my daily actions and choices impact our world? What consumer habits and patterns can I change to make my life and other lives around me, more sustainable?
How do my daily actions and choices impact our world? What consumer habits and patterns can I change to make my life and other lives around me, more sustainable?
21st October - 11th November 2017
21st October - 11th November 2017
Consumerism is entrenched into the heart of our economy and every act of consumption, no matter how small, is ultimately linked and responsible for climate change (Porritt, 2011). Our ecosystem that we depend on is dying, and despite being aware of the damage, we continue to consume more and more each year. It is very easy to deny the impacts of production and the hidden costs of convenience to society and our environment (Shah,2014), but I hope that through this reflection process and storytelling, I can begin to understand my consumption attitudes and impulses and make more ethical decisions in the future.
Please join me on a reflective journey where for a 3 week period (21st October - 11th November 2017), I record and reflect on my consumption habits and patterns, to try and identify the patterns and causes. I will then take action to reduce my consumption of renewable resources in an attempt to make my life more sustainable.
I am sure that my demographics have an impact on my consumption. My Australian husband and I are both international teachers and have been living and teaching in Asia for eight years now, with our two children. Life as an expat can be mind-blowing. So many challenges, new experiences, food and people to meet. We travel most school holidays to exotic locations and live with excessive convenience. We eat out most nights as takeaway is much cheaper than cooking at home, have a cleaner and rarely consider the costs of socialising as prices here are so cheap.
But we also live in an expat ‘bubble’, where the language barrier isolates us from our local community. This bubble makes it very difficult (but not impossible) to access particular goods and services, such as bulk buying or organic food. We live in a peaceful sense of ignorance, as we are sheltered from most of the local news. Disconnected. Mulligan (2015) describes this form of isolation as cocooning, and this certainly has a big impact on our consumption habits.
The Flying Addict
The Flying Addict
One of my obvious consumptions is flying. For the past four years, I have flown back home to Brisbane, Australia to see my 86 year old Mum four times a year, often taking one or two of my children with me. Research shows that flying has a huge environmental impact, contributing to carbon dioxide emissions and climate change (Taylor & Francis, 2015). Admittedly, it is an unavoidable consumption, but this prompted me to consider what action I could take to reduce my family's impact on our environment.
I calculated my carbon footprint for two economy class direct return flights from Bangkok to Brisbane and found that our flight approximately emitted 2.12 metric tons of carbon dioxide.
Unless consumers truly understand what their impact is, they will not change it. One of Bloch's 7 arguments for hope for the concept of living sustainably, is the tool of technology, and its transformative power to increase global awareness and the increased ability to share stories on social media (Mulligan, 2017). So what does one metric ton of carbon dioxide look like? Please see the photo below to help visualise what it looks like, as Brown University, in Rhode Island, USA for Earth Day (2013) took action to help develop their student's understanding. Perhaps having learned this as a student myself, my consumer choices may have been different?
But what does this really mean? The Guardian News (2016) shows that Australian's produce 20.6 tonnes per person, per year; while USA and UK are 19.8 and 9.7 tonnes respectively. What was very clear when looking at this data, was the difference between the developed and the developing countries and therefore their responsibility for climate change. For example, in comparison to Australia's 20.6 tonnes per person, per year, Nigeria only produces 0.77 tonnes per person, per year.
So, as an average Australian (which should not be my goal), producing 2.12 tonnes for our flights is significant.
Using technology again, I was able to research actions my family could take to counteract the impact our frequent flying has on our environment. I was able to find projects that we could invest in ranging from $17 USD to $53USD that focused on clean, renewable energy production.
And finally, I discovered that Thai Airways already offers a voluntary Carbon Offset Program, so in fact, when we had purchased our tickets, we could have taken this action. And in the future.... we will!
Cultural consumerism: Forgiveness with 40 plus nails
Cultural consumerism: Forgiveness with 40 plus nails
On 3rd November, we held our annual Loy Krathong ceremony at our school. “Loy” means “float”, and a “krathong” is "to float a basket" on a river. It is spectacularly beautiful. Children dress up in various traditional Thai costumes, and our whole community celebrates together. Each student makes their own krathong.
This is my third year experiencing this cultural event, and over the past two years, my perspective of the event has vastly changed.
The traditional krathongs are made from a banana tree trunk, which is then decorated using flowers and folded banana leaves, which were traditionally secured using bamboo branches. Today the base of the basket is often made from styrofoam, but the Thailand government is now promoting the traditional, biodegradable design. In schools, we float the krathong in our swimming pool, but more often than not, they are taken home to be released into the rivers.
My 11 year old students were quick to point out the irony of their cultural tradition. When you put your krathong into a river, you are not only wishing all of your problems and bad luck away, but you are also asking the Goddess of Water was heightened to a new level. Way to go Kim! One of the most environmentally, harmful events I have been to yet - all during my three weeks of reflection. for forgiveness from using her water source and polluting her.
I made my krathong, but this year our school used nails to secure the flowers, and I solemnly counted 40 alone in mine… Each of our 900 plus students made a kraraong which were then put in a plastic bag to take home. Last year Bangkok Metropolitan Administration statistics reported that more than 660,000 krathongs were recovered from the Chao Phraya river and city canals in Bangkok, the morning after the festival last year.
Sustainable living requires a change in the way cultures and communities behave, and yet cultural diversity must be celebrated and protected (UNESCO, 1997). Living sustainably is so very complex, where many traditional cultural events can strongly conflict with sustainability principles, and yet the solution is not to lose these events, as this would be as tragic as losing a species. As cultural consumers, my students and I were becoming more aware of the environmental consequences of our actions, and I could see that through education, these traditions were evolving to reduce their environmental impact, while still trying to in safeguard their cultural heritage for future generations.
The carnage continued - Chiang Mai Lantern Festival (4-5/11)
The carnage continued - Chiang Mai Lantern Festival (4-5/11)
My discomfort did not finish there. I boarded another plane for a girls weekend away in Chiang Mai to see the grandest Loy Krathong (Lantern Festival). Paying respect to the Goddess of Water again, was heightened to a new level. Way to go Kim! One of the most environmentally, harmful events I have been to yet - all during my three weeks of reflection.
We watched thousands of floating karthongs with candles twinkling down the river, AND thousands of sky lanterns disappearing up into the stars. Honestly. It was so magical. My friends bought one each (I politely declined), but helped them light them and release into the air. I could not help but see the beauty. Young couples and old, praying before they released their lantern, each one carrying a prayer, releasing the bad and praying for their collective future.
Things of the past have no value
Things of the past have no value
This week my 11-year old daughter proudly started the week with a ‘hand me down’ iPhone-5 from a friend, but returned home that day tearfully upset, as her friends had told her it was old and useless.
It is easy for us all to fall victim to this notion of ‘perceived obsolescence’ that last year’s version of a product is no longer useful, or fashionable and this fuels consumerism (The Story of Stuff, 2007). There is no denying how powerful media is in developing consumeristic ideology for children (Shah, 2014). It is very difficult to regulate what our children are learning from more than 3000 implicit and explicit media messages that they are exposed to every day (The Story of Stuff, 2007). The desire to own the newest and the best is difficult to keep at bay. Last year my husband 'surprised' me with my first iPhone, replacing my functioning Samsung. A significant financial purchase, where the impetus to buy was not based on need. So how does powerful force take hold?!
According to Mulligan (2017), 'planned obsolescence' is another driving force for consumerism, where companies develop products with a limited useful lifespan so that it either is perceived to be unfashionable or no longer functions after a short period of time. Many critics believe that Apple is using planned obsolescence to strengthen consumer desire (Bogert, 2016). This powerful force seriously influences my family as we all now own MAC’s, and are super reliant on Apple for the add-on products, updates and expensive repairs.
Two weeks of shifting consumption patterns (collective and personal)
Two weeks of shifting consumption patterns (collective and personal)
Knowing that over the next two weeks, I needed to take significant action to shift my patterns of consumption to live more sustainably, I wanted to first start with collective action. We achieve our best when we are part of a movement and a collective community (Etzioni, 2012). This action coincided with United Nations Week, so I presented in front of our Primary Years (PY) community during the weekly, morning flag raising.
"Last week was a very special, but a sad week for Thailand, with King Rama IX Royal cremation ceremonies. Throughout his seven-decade reign, King Rama IX worked tirelessly to improve the well-being of his people. It is very fitting that last week was also a very special week for our world. It was United Nations Week, which runs from 20th to 26 October, which is about raising awareness about how as a global community, we will achieve human rights and human dignity for all people.
In September 2015, world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDG's) which could mean an end to global issues such as extreme poverty, hunger, and ensuring quality education for all, and clean, renewable energy by 2030.
YOU have a special power to be of service to others and our world. Bring out your own super powers and share them -- the world needs it now more than ever! These 17 Global Goals directly connect to our Mission Statement, as they are all measurable, specific ways that we can make our world a better place. Remember that if everyone made a small change, we could create a peaceful, sustainable and just world.
How are you making our world a better place??!! :)"
My Grade 5 students initiated that every day for the next two weeks, they would collect all the waste they produce during morning snack, and display this waste outside of our cafeteria. Check out the amount of trash that 17 students produce below, in only 10 minutes!
My students have now collected five days of trash, and have already started analyzing the data to develop our communities understanding about what our impact really is. For example, they have discovered that they produce 17 bottles of milk trash per day, which is an astounding 3060 bottles per school year; which equates to 61200 bottles for our entire PYP department.
We must develop our awareness of our environmental impact on our world, and recognise that with this understanding, we will naturally have the will to participate and take action. Sewell in Sumner (2005) acknowledges the importance of placing our community in the centre of this meaningful dialogue so that they have ownership in the decisions essential for sustainable living.
Bubble up your life with Soda Water
Bubble up your life with Soda Water
Now it was time to consider how I could reduce my personal consumption of renewable resources. Our 2-week review quickly revealed that our biggest daily consumption was soda water. In Thailand, these cheap (5 baht = 15 cent) refreshing drinks (as the producer of Singha soda water so eloquently tells us), ‘bubble up your life, add your own fizz and live it to the fullest.’. As a family, we easily order 24 bottles per week through our convenient, home delivery Tesco service.
But where do these bottles go? My husband is always quick to tell me that they are recycled. 'No big deal', he says.
It is estimated that Thais produce 1.1 kgs of solid waste per day, with 50% of this being biodegradable, and yet Thai households pay less than 50 cents a month to dispose of this waste (First Post, 2014). Hope is abundant though, as despite this massive pile of trash, the opportunities for enterprise and profit, means that the trash is gold, and despite no formal infrastructure, Thailand has an abundance of lower class who are very dependent on this trash crisis (Sivasomboon, 2012). The majority of the recycling in Thailand is done at street level, most often old men and women (called "Khuad ma Khay"), who sell recyclables by weight to recycling centres.
Bubbled Out
Bubbled Out
We have now enjoyed (endured….) two weeks of no soda water, saving an estimated 48 glass bottles. It was a challenge to develop a routine of preparing jugs of lemon or roselle tea. But our household did it! We are such creatures of habit - wired to keep going, wrapped up in our own busy lives.
Benefits? Our recycling bin needed less emptying, which of course would have had an impact on our local environment. Our financial saving wasn’t huge ($7.20US), but as a family, we saw the difference that we could make.
What we really found out, was again, that it is very complex issue, and that we still have a lot more research to complete. At first, I felt that we should stop drinking soda water completely (or at least drink it rarely), but the street cleaners are very dependent on waste management.
Recycling is important, but we also learned that different types and sizes of trash have a different value for the street cleaners that collect them. We learned that the small soda glass bottles that we were purchasing have a lower value than the bigger size, which means there is less likelihood that they will get to the recycling centre at all.
There are more reliable ways for our trash to reach the recycling centre - such as some local businesses will deliver and collect the bottles, but this would by-pass the street cleaners. Is this any more ethical?
Plastic containers - Lost in translation
Plastic containers - Lost in translation
Convenience is my best friend. We either eat out or buy takeaway for the majority of our week. Our busy lifestyle demands it, and it's what we love about Asia. But... I’ve been grappling with this dilemma for many years now.
We spent the past two weeks not using plastic containers, which has generally meant, that we had to eat out. One workaround is going home first and collecting reusable containers, but we have had varied levels of success, and resistance to this. My husband most often refused to take the containers to a restaurant, and after his last attempt, I don’t really blame him. Something was obviously lost in translation :)
And now what?
And now what?
I personally continue to grapple with the conflict of convenience, cultural experiences and consumerism, particularly living in Bangkok, but an essential motivator that continues to help me shift our patterns of consumption is knowing how liberating and fulfilling this can be. I must continue to spend time connecting to our local community and seeking out like minded people who have discovered ways to live more sustainably in Bangkok, and persevere with the endless challenges that alternative visions present.
I also feel extremely positive knowing that each of our small actions create ripples and facilitate change. As an educator I have so much potential to change our future leaders (UNESCO, 2011) and I am really excited about our future and being a part of this collective movement.
Citation
Citation
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Bogart, N. (2016, September 08). Is Apple guilty of using 'planned obsolescence' to force iPhone users into upgrading? Retrieved November 11, 2017, from https://globalnews.ca/news/2926170/is-apple-guilty-of-using-planned-obsolescence-to-force-iphone-users-into-upgrading/
First Post. (2014). Thailand is hurtling towards a massive waste disposal crisis. Retrieved from http://www.firstpost.com/world/thailand-hurtling-towards-massive-waste-disposal-crisis-1690599.html
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Mulligan, M. (2017). An introduction to sustainability: Environmental, Social and Personal Perspectives. New York, NY: Routledge
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Sumner, Jennifer. Sustainability And The Civil Commons. Rural Communities In The Age Of Globalization. University of Toronto Press Incorporated, 2005.
Taylor & Francis. (2015, December 16). Green consumers flying in the face of environmental conviction. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151216082551.htm
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