Bridge at the Edge of the World by Speth James Gustave

Author:Speth, James Gustave [Speth, James Gustave]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780300145304
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 2008-02-14T16:00:00+00:00

Buying Green

Green consumerism has considerable potential—but only if consumers have adequate information, are insistent and willing to pay a bit more, and have strong government backing. Individual consumers and households exercise real power in the marketplace, and they can shift their preferences with remarkable speed, as fashion fads and the unfortunate rise of sports utility vehicles make plain. A sustainable food campaign could help transform agribusiness and the fishing industry. A consumer commitment to sustainable energy could force changes in energy production while helping protect the climate, and a commitment to toxic-free home and workplace environments could push the chemical industry toward new, safer products.

Even at levels of consumption that are high and growing, consumers can at least insist on two green things. First, they can shift purchases to products and services where the making and the use of the product are carried out in a more environmentally friendly way. And second, they can insist that provisions be made for the recycling and reuse of consumer products. When the consumer is done with the television, fridge, range, or computer, the manufacturer should take it back and see that it is reused, recycled, or disposed of in an environmentally responsible manner. This system is called “extended producer responsibility,” and it is more advanced in Europe than in the United States. These closely related goals can be promoted through both consumer campaigns and legislation.

There are hopeful signs in these areas, including increasing support from environmental and consumer groups. Ecolabeling and product biographies are a start.6 Notable developments include the Forest Stewardship Council’s efforts promoting the certification and labeling of wood products as having been produced in sustainably managed forests and the Marine Stewardship Council’s program certifying sustainable fishery practices. The Green Building Council’s certification of the environmental performance of new buildings is gaining wide acceptance and use. Consumers are beginning to vote green in the marketplace, and that is driving change. In Europe and Japan, the extended producer responsibility laws that require that the product be returned to the producer, “cradle to cradle,” has the effect of encouraging the producer to think about reuse of components and materials from the outset.7 The European Parliament has adopted laws obliging manufacturers to pay for the recycling of electrical appliances such as shavers, refrigerators, and computers. In 2002, Dell, responding to consumer pressure, broke new ground with a voluntary program of computer recycling. Now four states, including Washington and California, have e-waste recycling laws.

An important report prepared in 2003 for a group of U.S. foundations, the Environmental Grantmakers Association, encouraged investment in five areas to promote green consumption. Its recommendations are addressed to private foundations, but they need to be taken up by governments, environmental groups, and others.

Increase consumer awareness and choice. “Grantmakers need to underwrite communications campaigns, school curricula, and other investments in cultural currency to raise awareness and engage citizens and consumers for this cause. Consumers also need to understand how to buy environmentally friendly products, and how to signal to producers that a growing constituency of green consumers is on the move.

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