Sustainable consumption involves making purchasing decisions that minimize environmental impact and promote social equity.
The answer is simple, in order to be consumed. It may seem simple, but the production of goods and services uses raw materials from the environment, such as water, wood, fossil fuels, among others. Sustainable consumption talks about how the consumption of products and/or services can be managed in an intelligent way to avoid resource depletion and pollution.
Industrialization brought exponential growth in two areas.
At the beginning of the 18th century, with the start of the Industrial Revolution, the world population reached 700 million people and since that moment in our history, population growth has been exponential. During the 20th century the world population multiplied by 4 (four). The current world population is estimated at 8.1 billion people, according to UN estimates.
As the population grows, so does production and consumption. A major impact of the explosive growth of the human population means an equally explosive growth in the consumption of the earth's resources and the effects on ecosystems.
If we continue at this rate the environmental impacts will be greater and greater, that is why we must create awareness and change the way we consume different products, thinking beyond just satisfying our short term needs and thinking more about how our actions can contribute to build a more sustainable future.
A sustainable future is based on the physical balance between what the Earth produces, such as materials, energy and ecosystem services, and our need to provide life support for ourselves and all species. This is why all stakeholders (industry, society and government) must make changes in our production and consumption habits, seeking to prioritize those that are more environmentally friendly.
There are two main ways to help:
Reducing the way we consume
1
Think carefully about what you buy and choose a sustainable option whenever possible.
2
Properly separate waste from your home, so that it can be reincorporated into the recovery and recycling chains.
3
