Consumerism And Planned Obsolescence

With about 1.7 billion people in the consumer class, the damage of overconsumption in developed countries, greatly impacts the environment. Consumerism in the U.S. is responsible for the depletion of 20% of the world’s resources, and 50% of it’s waste. But, just as capitalism spreads in developing countries, consumer culture spreads with it. As this culture constantly progresses, and the needs of the poor become harder to reach, the welfare of the environment is overlooked. According to the UN human development report in 1998, “runaway growth in consumption in the past fifty years is putting strains on the environment never before seen.” (Shah, sec. 1) With such rampant destruction of our environment, we -as consumers- must ask ourselves how …show more content…
Planned Obsolescence happens when manufacturers decide to make consumer products that will become out of date, or break within a certain period of time; pressuring consumers to buy a product multiple times, stimulating demand for a product. (Planned Obsolescence, par. 1) Cell phone manufacturers sometimes use planned obsolescence by using parts that last 5 years instead of 20 years, to influence consumers to upgrade to newer models and toss away the old ones. For example, when companies like Apple come out with newer models and software, older models just so happen to become more sluggish, die quickly, and become harder to fix. Additionally, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports that Americans generate 2.5 million tons of used electronics every year, and more than 80% ends up in landfills, or dumps in Asian countries. (Graap Loth, par. 3) This cycle of product waste begins with products that become outdated as a result of a capitalist economy, and advertisements that train us to buy new products, that we don’t necessarily need. (Tulipano, sec. 3) As consumers, we must become inquisitive when shopping, buy durable products, upgrade when it is really necessary, and appreciate what we have, because when we don’t, it is the Earth that …show more content…
Political reform has focused greatly on global climate change, and steps have been taken to change our relationship with the environment, however tough choices will have to be made if we are to reach that goal. An important part of change is public awareness and education about what influences environmental issues. If the U.S. were to join other countries in the fight against environmental issues, we would be able to help and inspire other countries to do the same. Some could argue that the cost of fixing the problem that we have caused is to much, but what other alternative do we have? Are we going to let the earth die? Are we just going to bring future generations into a world full of our mistakes? No, we shouldn’t, because the cost will be worth trying to save their earth, especially if we actually acknowledge our problems and