Saw this idea and thought it was brilliant and also beneficial for many people with conditions that affect their range of motion and grasp, also in the event of an electrical mishap, this would allow for the plug to be safely unplugged without burning or electrocuting one self (assuming it’s still intact enough to pull and not melted completely)

Why is the only answer some people give is " go buy...?" Here in r/cooking , I asked for cooking hacks for doing without an oven. At least 75% of the responses were " go buy ..." Really annoying, all people can think about is use and consume.

I've been noticing that a lot of companies are trying to slap an "eco friendly" vibe on their stuff. But is that really what it seems, or is it just another sales trick? For example, recently, I picked up this supposedly "green" product (I don't want this to turn into a brand blasting or promoting, so I won't mention it), and they made it sound like it was practically saving the planet. But guess what? The packaging had enough plastic to make your head spin! It’s almost like they’re playing the green game, but just for appearances.

It got me wondering. Do they expect us to believe any of it? I mean, they tell us it’s "sustainable" but there's always something off about it. Maybe it's the feel good marketing that’s always about "eco this" or "earth saving" that. But under all those layers of packaging, it’s pretty much the same old story. Waste... planned obsolescence... and barely recyclable materials.

For anyone who’s trying to steer clear of getting caught up in greenwashing, how do you even sidestep it? Are there ways to just avoid the nonsense altogether, or maybe just say "no" to these companies making a profit off green sounding crap?

Hello,

I hope I have come to the right place! I’m starting a small coffee roasting company focused on genuine sustainability, and I’m looking for advice on avoiding greenwashing in a world rife with it.

I’ve looked into a lot of different options but would still like to hear thoughts and suggestions from a community with a shared interest in anticonsumptionism and environmental impact. There is a lot of things I yet don't know, and there will always be room for improvement. 😊

Here are some of my key considerations:

1. I unfortunately haven’t figured out an alternative option for plastic bags. The bag must be airtight, and a zipper is a good solution. For bagging purposes, a one-way valve is quite important as well, though not strictly necessary. The bags I have thought of are made of mono material and also CO₂-compensated by the manufacturer. It's important to remember, a bag consisting of multiple different materials will make its recyclability much more challenging.

Of course, there will be an option to refill a bag or use a container!

2. I roast my coffee with an electric roaster that runs on green energy and is therefore CO₂-neutral.

3.1. Initially, I wanted to get in touch with micro coffee lots to be able to get to know the farmers and their practices thoroughly, as well as pay a fair amount, making sure the money goes to the farmers and not just the management. I am not sure this would be the best option for the environment because of individually shipped smaller orders of raw coffee.

3.2. Working with a larger, ethical and sustainable sourcer could be less burdensome towards the environment. Larger order quantities and consolidated shipping potentiallu reduce the overall carbon footprint. It’s essential, though, to ensure that the sourcer is transparent, sustainable, ethical, and fair in their sourcing practices. The warehouse for the imported coffee would be located significantly closer to me than the nearest farms.

4. For the average coffee, the majority, over 50%, of its carbon emissions come from synthetic fertilizers used on farms. Choosing shade-grown, organic coffee not only dramatically lowers environmental impact but may also helps the farm act as a carbon sink, as tree cover sequesters CO₂ and promotes biodiversity.

5. I recycle all my produced waste that is recyclable, and the byproducts, such as coffee grounds and chaff, can be composted. I am also committed to compensating for all the CO₂ emissions I produce, ensuring that my operations are as carbon-neutral as possible.

This is a very small (passion) project, keep that in mind. I'd love to discuss this with you if you have any ideas or questions. Please also let me know where I'm not doing well. I will try my best in doing a good thing! Thank you for reading. 🙂

My bf said he was tired and "didn't want to deal with it" this was a full bottle of medicine by the way. It was not empty. Why do people have this stupid mindset

I think it’s paint? It feels like it at least and I think I could use hyrdogin peroxide? Any ideas?

Edit to define FBA: Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a service where Amazon stores, picks, packs, and ships products on behalf of third-party sellers. Sellers send their inventory to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, and Amazon handles the logistics, customer service, and returns, making it easier for sellers to reach Amazon’s customer base.

Hey everyone! I’m really interested in getting some honest opinions on Amazon FBA sellers. I know a lot of people here have mixed feelings about Amazon in general, so I’m curious where FBA sellers fit into that.

Do you see them as just adding to the whole overconsumption problem, or are they more like small business owners trying to survive in a giant marketplace? Maybe both? I’d love to hear what people here think, especially if you’ve had any specific experiences with FBA products. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

He is extremely flakey :C

and the plastic in this box was all from individually* wrapped reusable bags that are just recycled polyester. the irony

Does anyone think you can “overconsume” travel? Not talking about celebrities and their private jets, but just your everyday person who chooses to spend their money and time traveling extensively.

Think about it: you’re contributing to emissions by flying, contributing to cost of living crises in developing countries by staying in hotels or airbnb’s, you’re buying little trinkets at each of your stops, you’re showing off your travel pics on social media.

I know consuming experiences is considered better then consuming material stuff, but is over consuming travel getting off the hook too easy?

Speaking for the people who travel a lot, not the person taking a vacation or two a year.

I am one of the people I’m “criticizing” (not so much criticizing as much as I want to consider whether I’m doing more harm in external ways than I am doing good for myself seflishly).

First off, apologies if this is the wrong sub. I think this is under anti consumption because it’s a supposedly a service that prevents food waste, but I could be wrong and it may be consumption.

I’ve been receiving a lot of ads for this company, which apparently takes the “food waste” normal grocery stores won’t sell due to appearances and puts them on the market like some sort of vegetable wholesale place.

However, I’m cautious about this for two reasons:

A. I normally don’t buy stuff from the internet at all. I’ve used Amazon less than five times in my entire life.

B. Greenwashing

So I come here to discuss. Does anyone use this service? Does it actually reduce what would otherwise be good waste? What are your opinions on how it does what it does?

Moved to a new city for work so living with strangers. One woman initiates conversations about why I'm vegan, and if it naturally comes up, why I don't use amazon and get everything I can second hand.

The other day we spoke about buying new phones, I explained how I have owned a refurbished phone for nearly four years now and it hasn't deprecated at all, and how improvements in phones are so minor it's down to marketing to get people to want new ones. She asked what the most ethical phone to buy is and I explained anything second hand as you're not directly supporting slave labor, to which she just went "Well I'm not buying a second hand phone" even after we discussed suicide nets etc? We also brought up the exploitation H&M uses

The next day we plan a small halloween thing, they all want matching outfits from amazon and I tell them I morally object to using amzazon as well as buying platic costumes that will likely never be used again, so they use it for themselves anyway- not my buisness. This lady then says how she needs to get a white shirt for the outfit - someone else who (until that point) I had only seen buying new things suggested she get a cheap one from a charity shop because it's for a costume. "Well I'm not going to a charity shop, I'll get it from H&M."

I'm trying my best to lead by example bur this person is so far gone. Their job is literally social justice outreach but they can't keep themself from supporting exploitation of vulnerable populations??

Lately I’ve been going over my pile of makeup and skincare products and after calculating the total amount of things I’ve collected over the years and discovered that I’ve accumulated an average of $750 CAD worth of products.

The root of it stemmed from feeling the need to be seen as “presentable” by fitting the mold of [traditional] femininity by overspending on beauty products and services (~$800-1000/month on hair, makeup, nails, facials/skin treatments, etc) and justifying it with my high paying job and that it’s not a big deal since I can “afford” it.

As of today I do my own hair and nails, cut out unnecessary treatments with the biweekly lash extensions and monthly facials/dermaplaning, and implemented a no-buy cycle by using the products I have and purchasing things I use regularly while discontinuing the products I don’t have a use for. I’ve also looked into recycling programs and options for empties and utilizing that as well.

I wonder if anyone feels frustrated at the constant ads/promotions of beauty products and routines thrown out on a day to day basis and using women’s insecurities as a pain point to encourage overconsumption? And if/how the unlearning process has been as I still sometimes struggle with the mental process that comes with not being as “high maintenance” as I used to be and fighting the urge to back slide and resume some of my retired routines (skin treatments and brow/lash work)

Should have done it way sooner!

Recently I had to attend a wedding, so I decided to get a manicure. Since the event was a few days travel away, I opted for the gel manicure, so it wouldn’t chip.

After about 10 days, no chipping, but it had grown out. That’s when I realized gel polish can’t be removed at home. Needed a $15 second trip to the nail shop, where they used some kind of Dremel thing plus chemical soaks.

I started to pay attention. The salon also offered dip powder manicures, nail art, acrylic fake nails, glitter, cat eye manicure, whatever that is…on and on. This stuff is expensive! I started looking at other women’s nails in my daily life. Many have perfect nails all the time and they are obviously professionally done, some with little jewels glued on.

How much money are people spending on this? And how many chemicals are being used? Nothing wrong with grooming, but wow!

I recently started working there, and I find it incredibly difficult to not keep buying clothes.

I buy very few unnecessary things overall, but I do allow myself a small allowance specifically for charity store clothes: Nothing new is produced, it is cheap, the money goes to charity, and I can get really high quality for way less than new. I can scratch the consumer itch in a sustainable way.

But my usual method just doesn't work because I get so tempted. I get first dips on all the really cool things.

My usual method: 1. Having a running list of what clothes I and only go to buy that. 2. Having an allowance of a specific amount for each month.

What to do? I feel like I am an alcoholic who was put to work in a bar. And no, I am not going to stop working there.

What do you think are the guidelines for caring about these important issues - reducing our consumption, caring for the planet, shopping responsibly- while also not making others feel overly judged, coming off as a zealot, or just generally being a killjoy?

I see this a lot where I live in Northern California - a lot of people really struggle to strike the balance between caring about important causes but not coming off as a pretentious eco friendly asshole. It will always rub people the wrong way if you act like you know better & everyone must be as informed as you & live the way you do.

You've probably run into these types of people somewhere: if you don't already know what composting is or have a setup for it at your home, they act like "how dare you??" If you accidentally dispose of a single small item the wrong way, they draw attention to it at a social gathering. If you say you love Halloween casually they have to say "well I hate Hallloween cause of all the plastic!" like a total killjoy (tho I get it, there is a lot of plastic waste, but all someone said is they love Halloween!)

How do you think people should strike this balance? Or what are some personal experiences you've had as it relates to this topic?

These are my favorite shoes and I’ve worn them every day for the past year. Those tears open up into the sole, and I was wondering if there’s some repair so I can make these last longer. I’m also wearing a hole into the heel but I know there are patches for that. I really don’t want to buy new shoes if there’s something I can do about these.

The rest of the shoe is in great condition

I want to talk to you guys about something, that I feel we all need to hear.

Overconsumption is not just about physical things.
You can overconsume gossip, porn, movies, social media and news.

Some of these most people know they should not consume too much off, like porn. And by now most people should have gotten the memo about being too much on Facebook. But still, influencers are on an all time high and not all of them are trying to sell you stuff, but a parasocial relationship. (Be careful out there.)

But what I would like to pull more into view are news (and adjacent to that gossip).

While social media floods us with dopmine causing us to constantly relate to fake people and starve other activities of joy, because our dopamine receptors are busted, the news are not doing a great job at making us happy either. And with news, I don't just mean the daily news.
I mean articles about climate change and consumerism as well as influencers focusing on hating on influencers.

You didn't think Michelle Mc Daniels an Hanah Alonzo are not influencers just because they talk critically about influencers... They might sincerly want to entertain and inform, but they are still influencing and they are feeding info from the influencer world to people. Without those two YouTube Channels I would have never heard about many of the trends and have lived in blissful ignorance. Yet I enjoy watching them from time to time and my broke ass feels supririor to those rich influencersd. Because "I am a good person." and "I don't overconsume." and seeing them makes me angry. Seeing Elon Musk, talor Swift and michael Jackson wasting money and resources makes me angry.

It is just as unhealthy as living in a world of social media or having a cluttered house (which is proven to mentally stress you). I get the struggle of staying informed and learning new things and getting better at saving the world single handedly.

But people... I implore you to use the principle "Less is more" with digital content as well as with clutter.
- Do you really need porn to get off?
- Do you really need to watch the presidential debate?
- Do you need to watch the whole season of a show in two days?
- Do you need to see (or show us) the 100th picture of a ridiculous mug collection?
- Do you need to hear about Fat Acceptence, Mukbangs and Ragebait content you are not consuming anyway?
- Do you need to interact with this post or can you just scroll past?
- Do you need to watch the news every day?
- Do you need what bad thing you SiL did today?

Be mindful of consuming the invisible things too.
Declutter your feeds, don't scroll mindlessly.

Don't consume this which gets a rise out of you. Be blisfully ignorant of some of the things you can't change and know that your interaction with it drives it's relevance up and gets them what they wanted: Significance for them and mental strain on you.
Don't consume every post that comes your way on this sub. Scroll past the hate bait. Do not fall into the trap of feeling better than others for liking a hate comment on some insignificant influencer. It is worse for your (mental) health in the end.

This is as much a message to myself as it is to you.
The handycap for us to pull this off is insane...