Consume Responsibly

'Re-Thinking Progress' explores how through a change in perspective we can re-design the way our economy works - designing products that can be 'made to be made again' and powering the system with renewable energy. It questions whether with creativity and innovation we can build a restorative economy.

How Degrowth Can Save The World 37:54 minute video explores the harm that the myth of "endless growth" has caused society and our planet, then what benefits could be gained by refocusing our energy and time into sustainable alternatives such as a library economy, social services, and other community building practices.

How the Rich REALLY Cause Climate Change

20:36 minute video talking about why we focus so much on carbon footprints and how corporations make decisions about production for society, but without our knowledge nor consent, which have caused our current crisis.



Carbon, land, energy, and water footprints can be helpful in understanding our personal, community, school, family, or business's impacts on the planet, it is important to remember that the concept of carbon footprints were originally intended as a distraction from Big Oil to put focus on our consumption, rather than their production, lobbying, shady tactics, greenwashing, and outright lies to the public. 

Companies are in a unique position where they can take control of supply lines, enforce adherence to circular economy, organic, and low-impact productions. Instead of giving into the myth of endless growth, companies would better serve society by producing things that are genuinely needed, instead of constantly producing low-quality items that end up destroyed or in land fills.

Impacts of Decisions

When trying to reduce our footprints (water, waste, land, deforestation, carbon, etc.) it can be a bit overwhelming with all the information, product labels and (sometimes greenwashed) promises. With this in mind, we thought it'd be helpful to provide remind people of some simplified ways to make sure you are saving resources including money, and maximizing your impact, minus the decision fatigue!

Reduce > Reuse > Recycle

It might sound a bit trite, but Reduce > Reuse > Recycle are listed in order of importance.  The " > " symbol being the "greater than" sign in math, but for our purposes case meaning "better than" or "having greater impact than". At every level from land clearing and production, to consumption, transporting items to be resold or reused by others, and even recycling use resources including water, electricity, and repairs or maintenance also require resources, potentially creating more pollution. This means our greatest impact can often start from the simple question:

"Do I really need this?"

If we engage in meditative practices such as "minimalism" we can often sort through our things or ask around and find that there's already one or maybe more items that can serve our needs. Sometimes people feel they "need" things because others have them, or they saw an add (designed to prey on people's insecurities), but don't actually feel happier or have an easier life after procuring the item(s). 

Reduce

Reuse

We can reuse things we already have, or when considering a new purchase it's always worth spending a little extra money upfront for reusable versions of things that might seem cheap up front, but often cost a small fortune over the long term.

Some items can be serviced or repaired now and then.

Recycle

There's been a lot of noise in the news lately about how we have been lied to and almost nothing we put into recycling is actually recycled. While it's good to keep recycling through official systems (to help indicate that we're willing to pitch in even if others in the system have failed us), there are some ways we can take things into our own hands.

Resources

General Guides

Carbon Footprint

Water Consumption

The following resources are listed (according to the info in the link above), from greatest impact on water resources, to least.

PlaneteerHandbook Resources

Click any of the buttons beneath to find out what's in your area!

Apps and Extensions

After Purchase

Before You Shop or Dine Out

Buy Second Hand

Earn Money for Earth-Friendly Projects

Reviews & Ratings

Before You Shop or Dine Out

The scores on our Ethical Shopping Guides are compiled from this research to give an overview of how the brands and products within different markets compare on a wide range of ethical issues." 

Boycotts

After Purchase

Online Communities

Groups

Ellen Macarthur Foundation

"The Ellen MacArthur Foundation develops and promotes the idea of a circular economy. We work with, and inspire, business, academia, policymakers, and institutions to mobilize systems solutions at scale, globally.

Our mission is to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

Our vision is a new economic system that delivers better outcomes for people and the environment. Business models, products, and materials are designed to increase use and reuse, replicating the balance of the natural world, where nothing becomes waste and everything has value. A circular economy, increasingly built on renewable energy and materials, is distributed, diverse, and inclusive."

Oceana

New Zealand


Greenwashing

What is greenwashing? 

What is Greenwashing? Examples [2020] "Greenwashing is a deceptive practice that companies use to trick you into thinking that their products are environmentally friendly when they are not.

This article is going to show you everything about greenwashing that you need to know, including:

Ecological Impacts of Food Choices

It is estimated that with our current land use and technology, that we should be able to easily feed between 12-14 billion people, yet as our population has reached 8 billion, 828 million people go hungry each year. Climate change: warmer, colder, wetter, drier weather, with more extremes is negatively affecting our ability to feed everyone. War, fertilizer shortages, increased disease, pest outbreaks, and fungi are being exacerbated by climate change and further threaten our food security.

About 1/3 of food is lost to spoilage, poor planning, and other preventable causes, but worse still is the even greater levels of opportunity cost loss which occurs in fields before the food is even grown. This happens when farmers raise inefficient food sources such as livestock who require far more land than any other food type, more water, and consume more food in the form of crops than they replace when slaughtered.

Click the Food Security button to learn more, and what types of choices can provide more nutrients at lower ecological cost to the planet.

Animal Products

Meat generally has the highest ecological footprint in regards to land use, water use, water pollution, air pollution, increasing pressure on our resources which creates a greater global hunger crisis. The fishing industry, aquaculture, dairy, and eggs have serious consequences for the environment as well as human health. 

Click the following buttons to learn more:

Rice 

Rice produces methane and nitrous oxide when fields are flooded, then more dangerous pollutants are released during stubble burning. Changing farming practices can reduce water waste, air pollution, and nutrient run off.

Rice is a staple crop in many cultures so while it produces less pollution per unit than livestock, the sheer amount of rice eaten is what makes the crop problematic.

Food Waste

Focusing on removing high-impact foods like animal products will have the greatest impact, but about 30-40% of all grown, raised, or hunted food gets wasted.

Meal planning can help reduce waste. 

Learning how long food can be stored for, and the best methods of storage can help extend the amount of time food can be saved.

Apps to Reduce Food Waste

The list above or organizations focused on ending hunger can be found on our Combat Hunger page along with organizations serving smaller areas (for example you can check for specific charities in certain states if you scroll to the USA section), as well as some countries' guidelines on laws concerning food donations or plans to eliminate hunger through better food management and planning.

Composting

Composting should be the last resort when it comes to food security and food waste.

Avoiding animal products reduces our dietary impact the most in respect to water, space, and energy use, also reducing the amount of emissions caused by food production, but an added benefit is that plant/algae/mushroom-based foods can all be easily composted in most cases. Animal products should not be composted except for specific situations which can be done safely in some industrial composting systems, but generally not at home or on a farm.

Composting produces greenhouse gases, and a lot of resources are lost when we waste food, but composting is better for our atmosphere than incineration or putting food into landfills. There is also the added benefit of keeping and recycling the nutrients from food waste, instead of letting those nutrients add to water contamination via other methods of disposal.

Click the Composting button to learn more about the benefits of composting, and some ways you can ensure your food is composted.

Click the How to Compost button to learn more about what can be composted, and a variety of ways to do it at home or work, whether you are only able to do so indoors, or you have plenty of room to do so outdoors.

Click the Composting Services button to for a directory of places that will take your compost. These include a compost-sharing app, and bike-powered composting services.

Life Expectancy of Products

Understanding how old something is, historical lifespans of objects, and modern life expectancies of those same things can help us better understand how to invest our money, and when we are being cheated by greedy corporations.

Building Materials & Household Appliances

Refurbished Goods

The life of a product can be extended by refurbishment and repair. You can often get discount prices on very good products by visiting your local repair shops. For example many sewing machine and/or vacuum repair shops also accept used machines which they refurbish and sell back to their communities.

Repair Cafés and Repair Shops

These help you keep your belongings in working condition for longer. 

Some places listed in our Repair directory help you repair your own items, while others offer another person's services.

Resellers 

Some of the Zero-Waste shops in our Zero Waste Shops directory sell second and or refurbished goods.

Alternatively, you may want to look for online sellers for refurbished goods: