Pollution vs. Capitalism- The Movie Villain vs. The Actual Villain
Tags: Environmental Impact, Capitalism, Energy, Global Warming, Social Media

Paper straws are not the only way we can seamlessly help the planet.

www.pluggedin.com

Global warming is real. Whether or not paper straws will save the planet however, is still up for debate. The 21st century has led to a lot of great discoveries- the internet, foundation shades for black skin and, Instagram (I’ll let you decide that one). One of the hottest topics nowadays is sustainability/ global warming/ pollution/ environmentalism. Well do I have news for you, Capitalism is just as dangerous, if not more dangerous than pollution. Now wait, before you think I’m a fanatic environmentalist that hates shopping, let’s explore the effects that capitalism has on the society and why it needs to be curbed before we can fully tackle environmental sustainability.

What is Capitalism?

Google says it’s an economic and political system in which a country’s trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state. AKA the more you buy, the more the economy grows so incessant buying of products and services is highly encouraged by ‘the powers that be’.

Economic Ballooning is Driven by Capitalism

In the age of social media influencers and celebrity ‘stan’ culture, there has been an even greater shift towards fast fashion, flexing and buying the latest brand-influencer collab highlighter palette. Last year alone, the US e-commerce market saw 3–4 trillion in spending. Trillion. A growth of about 15% from the year before. Now you can argue that this has to do with increased population and education (and ultimately spending power). However population growth in the US was 0.6% and the number of bachelor degrees was the same in 2018 and 2019. So what’s the truth?

www.psychologytoday.com

EVEN DURING A PANDEMIC, money spent on goods and services went up. That is to say, capitalism can’t even be stopped by a global disease. Pollution on the other hand went down, with places like Venice in Italy seeing beautiful restoration of their water bodies.

The Guardian, 2020

Pollution vs Capitalism

Pollution gets a bad reputation. Every company is heavily scrutinised if they’re not green or trying to ‘ go green’. Countries like the UK are aiming to have zero emissions by 2050. To be fair, pollution is killing wildlife, raising the earth’s temperature and causing deterioration of health. However, capitalism is likely a catalyst of pollution, and the way in which and frequency of how we spend needs to be taken into account in battling pollution and environmental degradation. Here are some (not all) ways that capitalism contributes to pollution:

Social Media

www.fellows.co.uk

We all know by now that fast fashion isn’t sustainable and that £200 steaks are a result of animal-rearing which in itself is bad for the environment (no, I’m not vegan). So why do people still do it? With the rise of social media and the selling of our data to harmfully capitalist-driven entities, you are reminded everyday that you are not good enough unless you can afford the new Jacqemus (google the pronunciation) bag or if you travel in anything less than an ensemble of LV luggage. Let’s not forget the copious amounts of over-the-counter skincare products that do absolutely nothing. The power we give social media personalities on not only what we buy, but how much stuff we buy, is something that the business magnates of the world have heavily, wait for it,…

www.digitalspy.com

capitalised on.

The continuous ads and stealing of our data in order to sell you the exact pair of crocs (yeah, not for me either) you were just on the phone to your mum about, has led to personalised ‘you-need-this-NOW’ marketing. Not only does this encourage harmful manufacturing processes like mining, and paying factory workers in developing countries lower than living wage, the mental effect it has on us is that we must buy to be accepted and respected.

There is also the issue of travelling for that instagram feed with the warm and inviting aesthetic. Travelling is great, the inspiration and clarity of mind that comes with visiting the old town of Croatia or petting the alpacas in Peru is unmatched.

blog.bannersnack.com

However, travelling internationally 20 times a year because that’s the only way to fill your instafeed continuously and thus make it in the influencer world, is excessive, considering planes can emit up to 100g of CO2 per hour (depending on the size and capacity of the plane that’s filled). Average international flights of 3–4 hours, means 300–400g of CO2 per flight per day, with thousands of flights happening around the world constantly. Hotels’ energy usages also go up and the propensity for polluting water bodies through sports and other things. Increasing that CO2 emissions profile just to ‘fit in’ is why capitalism is the mothership of excessive pollution.

Cheap….. Stuff

offspring.lifehacker.com

Have you ever seen a pair of shoes with largely varying prices in two different stores? After buying the cheaper one, which is what most of us (myself included) usually do, we then discover why the other store was selling it at a much higher price. Cheap items that can only get used once or twice before losing their function or structure or colour in the wash, increase demand and thus supply of cheap items. Splurging on items of the same type or make but of higher value, usually leads to a longer utility lifespan of items and allows for less incessant buying. A lot of designer items are also hand-made and so do not use machinery in their crafting, also reducing the emission of toxic substances during production. The prices of these luxury items also highlight how crazy it looks to spend someone’s annual salary on one earring and thus have the mental effect of not buying excessively (in some people, we can’t save everybody).

Professional Profiles

www.flexjobs.com

Pre-pandemic, LinkedIn was bursting at its digital seams with people taking long haul journeys to attend conferences where they meet people that they would never talk to again, but at least they got to increase their LinkedIn profile? Virtual conferencing is one of the one of the many environmentally-friendly things that covid has provided us. I mean, people travelling for 12 hours each way for a ‘Climate Conference’ evidently didn’t sit right with Mr. Covid. Increase in bike-to-work schemes have also helped to reduce the number of cars on the road and trains used to get to work.

Old (Environmentally-Destructive) Habits Die Hard

Oil & Gas won’t just….. go away. Renewables, hydrogen, nuclear energy, vehicle-to-grid charging from electric vehicles, etc, have still not reached the point where they can compete with energy produced from crude oil, in terms of pricing and supply capacity. Big O&G players know this so they are riding the environmentally-destructive oil train until the wheels fall off, or you know, global warming goes too far for us to control it. People who don’t believe the EV revolution is going to happen are still buying fuel cars, and automakers are still selling to them. Contrary to what grandiose statements made in favour of UN SDG-7 by OECD countries might have you believe, there is still a lot of money being pumped into oil & gas firms (now ‘energy’ corps). The fact is, as our consumption increases due to the aforementioned reasons, production and manufacturing must increase to meet demand, and therefore more energy is needed, in a capacity range much higher than clean energy is able to cater to currently. So oil & gas, pollution and oil spills it is until clean energy technology can catch up.

To conclude, it is up to us to make sure some level of social responsibility is applied to how frequently we spend and what we spend on. Enjoying your hard-earned money should be a balance between buying what you really want and thinking about the consequences of your buying on the global ecosystem.