The consumer model is constantly shifting, with many customers today focusing on what is known as “conscious consumerism”—the buying practices driven by a commitment to making purchasing decisions that have a positive social, economic, and environmental impact. In layman’s terms, this means consumers are buying into businesses—both big and small—that lead with their moral compasses, not compromising the well-being of workers, animals, or the environment for financial profits. This practice is consistently on the uptrend, and businesses are taking notice, with many changing their models to appeal to the “conscious consumer” market.
Why Does This Matter?
This trend matters and is imperative for our societies’ future because it’s better for everyone. Why? For starters, it drastically helps humankind inch closer to achieving sustainability goals. With the climate crisis looming and growing steadily day by day, conscious consumerism can curb the effects of human waste and pollution. It cuts back the need for mass consumption and production, which is one of the main culprits behind the degradation of the environment.
Furthermore, it is imperative from an ethical point of view—as a significant emphasis of conscious consumerism revolves around the idea of having a positive social and economic impact. Unfortunately, very many companies have done—and still do—unethical business practices. Some of the most deplorable actions center around human labor and the inhumane treatment of animals. For example, the fashion industry is undergoing massive scrutiny for video footage of their atrocious animal abuse, as uncovered by a recent documentary from CaveLight Films titled The Face of Fashion is Fear. It’s so disheartening that it’s nearly impossible not to weep at the sight of these actions towards living creatures. This hasn’t been the first time things like this have happened, and what’s worse, they are still happening. It then begs the question, why is this okay? And how do we stop it? Let’s look at a select few.
Educate Yourself
One of the most powerful tools we have is education. Most, if not all, have access to the internet nowadays. That means we can do our research. Take time to do your due diligence and find out how companies and brands genuinely operate—what you find may surprise you.
Of course, we all want to shop at ethical places, but the sad truth is, sometimes the places we shop do a near-perfect job at shielding the truth from us. That being said, make sure to do as much research as you can before you make a decision. You wouldn’t buy a car or attend a university without doing some extensive research first, right? Well, do the same for the other products and services you’re buying.
Make Your Money Count: Good Businesses Are Good Business
Businesses are in business to make money, bottom line. However, using your funds to buy ethical products and services can change this narrative—showing that companies can be great for the world and great for their bottom-line.
For example, have you heard of the term “circular economy”? This model is a systematic approach to economic development designed to benefit various stakeholders aside from just the businesses—mainly helping society and the environment. This process is designed to be regenerative and seeks to gradually step away from the consumption of limited, non-renewable resources by focusing on sustainable measures that create a “circular” model versus the traditional linear model. So, this means creating products and systems that can be fully reused and/or repurposed, reducing the overall amount of waste generated from manufacturing development. This business model is becoming increasingly popular and proving that it can be done.