Pull Up Your Socks: A Beginner’s Guide to Green Consumerism
At PPL PWR, we believe that doing your bit to save the planet shouldn’t cost you the earth. In fact, when it comes to sustainable living, less is often more.
Last week we dipped our toes into a series of water saving strategies. This week, PPL PWR’s Green Voices, Smart Choices blog series turns to green consumerism and considers what it means to embody the sustainable shopper.
‘Buy less. Choose well. Make it last.’
- Vivienne Westwood
What’s the fuss?
The sustainable shopper: myth or material reality? Is the buzzword of sustainability a corporate goal that is achieved in business practice, or is it simply a marketing spin that satisfies the growing consumer demand for purpose-driven brands? The age of the green consumer is at odds with hyper-consumerism and its promotion of new products with a short life cycle that serve as symbols of wealth, status, and personal identity. As conscious consumerism gains momentum against a backdrop of conspicuous consumerism, shoppers are often torn between a desire to go green and the hurdles of high prices, low availability, lack of awareness of sustainable alternatives, and a general distrust of the authenticity of claims made by companies guilty of greenwashing.
Source: SmartestEnergy. 2015. Sustainability Matters Consumer Research Report.
How then can we use our leverage as consumers to make positive purchasing choices that close the intention-action gap between those who are keen to lead more sustainable lives and those who successfully do? Businesses can overcome the barrier of green scepticism by maximising the reward and minimising the effort required to access and afford an eco-friendlier lifestyle, encouraging consumers to turn their sustainable intentions into sustainable actions.
Take a pick from the following tips and tricks on how to channel your inner green consumer, and you’ll be trading shopping for swapping in no time:
1. Scrutinise the labels on your favourite staples!
They say you should never judge a book by its cover, but not judging a product by its label comes at a cost. Sustainability standards and certifications are sets of voluntary guidelines used by manufacturers, retailers, and service providers to indicate to consumers that a product is ethically sourced and upholds particular social and environmental standards. Nevertheless, many call into question the veracity of green marketing claims, with sustainability as a public relations exercise becoming more prevalent as businesses are held to a higher environmental standard than ever before.
While businesses that merely pay lip service to the green agenda have sown seeds of doubt in the public consciousness, a sea change in consumer expectations has meant that consumers are increasingly advocating for a sustainable corporate culture that encourages businesses to be more forthcoming about their policies and practices. The most reliable labels require rigorous third-party accreditation by independent auditing agencies such as the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO). Evaluating the credibility of different sustainability standards and certifications can be a tricky business, but empowering yourself with the knowledge to make informed purchase decisions is one of the most valuable tools at your disposal. Browse through the Ecolabel Index’s international directory to discover what lies behind each label.
2. Bag yourself a bag for life, forget about your plastic strife!
A single-use plastic carrier bag charge was enforced in England in October 2015. The 5p levy imposed at retailer checkouts was devised as a national recycling and waste scheme that sought to reduce plastic use by discouraging customers from purchasing polyethylene bags. Figures demonstrate promising progress: seven major supermarkets in the UK reported that from 2017 to 2018, customers bought 25% fewer plastic bags compared to the previous year, resulting in the reduction of 300 million plastic bags.
The vexed question of whether canvas tote bags are indeed as green as they’re purported to be is complicated by the use of cotton, a highly water intensive crop that relies heavily on agrochemicals, which contaminate water supplies with nitrate. Organic cotton, by contrast, is irrigated with harvested rainwater instead of extracted groundwater, and eliminates the need for hazardous synthetic pesticides. As a golden rule, reuse a bag until it becomes unusable—only once it reaches breaking point should you consider buying a new one. Baggers can’t be choosers, so why not treat yourself to one of Ecoduka’s reusable bags made from natural and recycled materials?
3. Parade your compassion and ration your fashion!
Don’t be clothes-minded: the business model that underpins the fast fashion industry involves the mass production of poor quality garments manufactured in sweatshops and touted as voguish to the fashion-conscious. Being a mindful consumer of clothing pivots on three basic tenets: shop infrequently, wear for longer, and choose wisely. By contrast, fast fashion retailers follow an ‘out with the old, in with the new’ ethos, sending the message that outfit repeating is a major fashion faux pas (newsflash: it isn’t).
‘I try to educate myself on fast fashion and limit purchases to necessities,’ says PPL PWR’s Yashvini. While the seasonal cycle of fashion trends incentivises shoppers to refresh their wardrobes regularly, this generates a hefty 92 million tonnes of discarded clothing every year. Almost 20% of untreated global wastewater is produced by the textiles industry, polluting waterways with arsenic, lead, and mercury.
The detrimental effect of degraded water quality on human populations and aquatic life is compounded by microfibres, a type of microplastic released by washing machines into sewage facilities and eventually rivers and seas when plastic polymers such as nylon and acrylic are washed. Lauren from PPL PWR says, ‘If I buy, it’s almost always natural materials. I avoid synthetics as much as possible.’ A particularly planet-friendly option is organic hemp, a high-yielding carbon negative raw material that enriches the soil through phytoremediation, the process by which green plants balance out the toxic metal contaminants present in the soil.
On the front line of the ethical fashion movement is a modest contender—none other than your local charity shop. By breaking with the ‘buy it new, wear it once’ culture, shopping second-hand not only brings home the bargains, but it also encourages you to hold onto them for longer. Although reducing by reusing is your greenest go-to, in the instances where buying second-hand isn’t your first port of call, there's a growing number of sustainably-minded clothing brands that will not in fact burn a hole in your pocket. Try Boody for your basic essentials, Kula for vegan bags, and if you really feel like rolling up your sleeves, check out the slow fashion retailer Earth Wardrobe for casual attire and sportswear.
4. Thrift till you drift and swap till you drop!
One solution to hiked-up high street prices that counters the treatment of textiles as disposable commodities is participation in clothing swaps. Anna from PPL PWR takes part in clothing swaps with friends and fellow members of her church, a practice known as swishing. Popularised by companies such as Vinted and By Rotation, collaborative consumption has gained traction as a cog of the sharing economy, allowing users to buy and sell pre-owned clothes and accessories at affordable prices.
A notable example is the fashion rental platform Hirestreet, who have partnered with reGAIN, an app that promotes the development of a circular fashion industry in which waste is designed out through the recycling and upcycling of second-hand clothes. Although the modern face of thrifting has become increasingly digitalised, organising a good old-fashioned swishing event in your local area is a creative way of bringing people together to share in their collective passion for fashion while extending the life cycle of their pre-loved clothes.
Final thoughts
Ensuring that our sustainable values are reflected in practice and that our green-minded plans come to fruition instead of dying on the vine can be challenging, particularly during a cost of living crisis when our priorities are shifted to simply making ends meet. The current economic climate, however, provides an ideal opportunity for investing in the future by exploring the possibilities of sustainable living and cultivating a new consumer culture founded on thrift, innovation, and community.
Willingness to engage in pro-environmental behaviours is a matter of means, mindset, and motivation. A shared commitment to greening our shopping habits will help drive changes in the marketplace as consumers continue to demand transparency and hold companies accountable for their green claims. Ultimately, rethinking eco-consumerism as a lifestyle rather than a trend is key to the green imperative and the transformation of attitudes into action.