Adoption of Sustainable Behavior

In order to preserve our resources, environmentalists use the concept of sustainable development-sustainable development is a development that satisfies our current needs without compromising the future availability of natural resources, or our future quality of life. Our consumption rates have risen significantly higher; according to the World Watch Institute, and their article The State of Consumption Today, the rate has gone up thirty-five percent, and we are now ecologically at risk. Nevertheless, who can we blame but

As a nation we all participate in daily consumption of food, clothing, shelter and some sort of transportation. to survive. We are destroying our environment with waist. On average Americans disposed over 200,000 tons of edible food daily. Pollute our air and water, destroy our forest, just so we can drive the newest car or have the latest crafted oak furniture We use top soil to build malls, so people can consume even more. In "The shadows of Consumption, Peter Dauvergne explain the coast of consumption by globalized corporations, trade, and finance." (Dauvergne, Peter. The Shadows of Consumption: Consequences for the Global Environment. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2008. ).

As we produce and consume more we add more into the environment. We continually produce products and services and create consumers that consume these products and services. These processes require more energy and resources, thus generating increasing industrial and consumer wastes, all of which are added to the environment.

As I reflect back over these last five weeks I now have a clearer view of marketing and how it affects not just the consumers of the world and the companies with their marketing managers, but how it affects me. Yes, I am a consumer who clips coupons, budgets my finances, and looks for sale items and this marketing class has taught me that marketing is more than selling or advertising. Marketing managers have a difficult job, as marketing involves identifying, meeting and satisfying the needs of customers or clients with goods and or services. Coming up with different strategies and marketing mixes is challenging because we live in a changing world with people who needs and financial situations are different. Yet still marketing engulfs every part of our daily lives. From what type of breakfast we eat, to where we shop, and even in our work environment. As I examine marketing, I will blend aspect to my career path as I make myself marketable for the future and aid my employer in the growth and survival in the economy.

In Section 1 of Simon Nicholson and Paul Wapner’s text, Species Unbound: Humanity’s Environmental Impact, the authors bring significant insights into how humanity is producing a negative impact on the environment. Partly because “seven billion people” coupled with an ever-growing population are consuming scarce resources such as wood for paper/furniture etc. at rates faster than regeneration which is leading to resource depletion (Nicholson and Wapner 2015, 9-10). Furthermore, other key sustainability challenges are climate change due to the burning of fossil fuels and biodiversity loss, to name a few. Thus, humans are a negative impact on the environment in terms of not sustaining the Earth's resources, life, climate, and so forth. Since this effect on the environment is so profound some believe we are living in the Anthropocene- in which humans have become the central force in reigning supremacy over earth’s changing environmental conditions and resource depletion (11-12). The author’s claim that one way in which humans are altering the

The United States is economy is based on a consumption driven model. Corporate law has more to do with lining shareholder pockets than environmental protection. Externalities have become a byproduct of doing business in the United States. Perhaps this is why economics has become an environmental issue as well as a financial one. The release of greenhouse gasses into the environment is increasing. The environmental impact of electronic goods is negatively affecting our ecosystem. From water, to farming, to the amount of trash we dispose of our consumption continues to impact our environment in negative ways; in the not so distant future the damage could become irreversible. Recycling helps a great deal, but, the only reasonable path back to a sustainable way of life must, by necessity, include less consumption.

We as a society have been presented with the question of whether or not individual action is a valid solution in the midst of the debate on “environmentalism.” Can we as individuals still contribute to reducing climate change with individual action such as riding a bike? In the article “Individualization: Plant a Tree, Buy a Bike, Save the world, the author Michael F. Maniates analyzes this question in regards to individuals participating in green consumerism. In response to the growing trend of green consumerism companies have started producing “green” products in order to keep up with consumer demand. On the surface this seems like a step forward to a sustainable future, however “green” products like to advertise their “eco-friendliness”

“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” In this report, I will outlay four different methods by which I can reduce my ecological footprint. The point could certainly be argued that one person will never make a difference, that my footprint is just too insignificant to worry about. However, just as each beach is made up of single, seemingly insignificant grains of sand, this world is made up of billions of “single” people. Working all together, a giant leap will be achieved. I will explain how changing my habits in the ways that I charge my electronics, shop, deal with waste and drive will decrease my ecological footprint.

Summary of the article written by Tom French, Laura LaBerge, and Paul Magill with a title “We’re all marketers now”

The environment has been put in a dangerous position of not having sufficient amount of resources for current residents and the future generations that are to come. Many things such as personal needs put the environment in this position, but most of time we use these products because they are needed. Earth has become reliant on the resources, therefore we use up our resources way too fast. Our current obstacle to obtaining sustainability is we don't manage our resources, and they are used too often when there is not enough to begin with. Individually we are responsible for ourselves and the actions that are used to take care of the environment. To reach sustainability, there needs to be a limit of how much is used.

With about 7.4 billion people living on Earth right now, the question of how one planet can continue to support our population continues to spread. It does not help that this number is only expected to increase, which poses for difficult times in the near future. We are at our carrying capacity, and more people than would like to admit are living way past the normal ecological footprint. Modern western culture has led to many believing a luxurious lifestyle is necessary. People buy TV’s they don’t need, food they won’t eat, etc. Unfortunately, I believe that we have turned into a wasteful society that isn’t grateful for the things handed to us by both our society and Mother Nature herself. It is just the way that some have been raised, and

There are many ways that living non-sustainable lives can affect us negatively. For example the foods we buy and eat are the main problem.According to the

We could also contribute mass consumerism to the environmental issue that we face today. Because people want to buy more affordable goods, companies look for more affordable resources and in order to obtain those, they generally choose the more environmentally harmful product. An example of this is palm oil and the farms in Indonesia producing it. Indonesia is currently home to one of the few important forests on Earth, but citizens are taking down trees in order to make better use of the land, one use being palm farms. An article by Charlie Bibby follows Vidar Helgessen,

Society as a whole is struggling to balance old dominant western environment ideals with new green environment ideals. As science shows the effects of climate change, and the detriments of a Western consumerist culture on the environment, many people are shifting towards a more green, eco-friendly philosophy. This shift of being conscious of the environment, has prompted some people and companies to make honest changes to preserve and help the environment. This starting shift in society of being eco-friendly has prompted many businesses to jump on this trend, as it looks better to consumers and often saves or makes the companies money. Despite, this new societal shift toward a green paradigm, many parts of society want to hold onto to dominant western ideals of controlling and using the environment’s resources to the advantage of humans. Society is currently wrestling, with whether to follow the ideas of the dominant western paradigm, or the newer green paradigm. Many parts of society are shifting towards a green paradigm, but is this for genuine environmental reasons, or to make money and products, that continue to feed into the consumerism ideals of the old dominant western paradigm?

Many individuals are unaware of the harm that they cause to our planet. We live in a society where we eat and use electricity without knowing where it comes from or what damage it might cause to our planet. We have needs that do no make sense to the rest of the world. While some of us enjoy our luxurious meals, other individuals are given little choice. Richer countries have been accustomed to the point where many are unaware of the problems that they cause. The ecological footprint is a very good tool to show us how we use our nature and raise awareness toward environmental protection.