A Little Story About Stuff and Life On #EarthDay

1/ Humanity lives at credit and consumes resources equivalent to that of 1.7 planets a year, vs 1.4 a decade ago and 0.8 in 1963. 

If population and consumption trends continue, this figure will rise to 2 planets by 2030.

2/ The US is 4% of the world’s population but produces 12% of global waste.

3/ In December, Americans returned more than 1 million packages to e-commerce retailers per day, accounting for 5 billion pounds of landfilled waste in the U.S. and 15 million tons of carbon emitted.

4/ We need to build a new consumption model that works better for our health, our children, and our planet.

https://medium.com/@alielidrissi/we-need-a-new-consumption-model-9ca9a4384f7

Here are three driving principles:

5/ (i) Reconnect with what we truly need:

We constantly get tricked into buying products we barely use and end up dealing with all the waste and clutter.

Let's build solutions that help people cut through the noise and get what they really need.

6/ (ii) Quality matters:

We produce and consume too much cheaply made disposable stuff. High-quality alternatives are often too expensive.

Let's break that model and build solutions that make sustainable living accessible to all.

7/ (iii) Smarter behaviors:

We can organize smarter behaviors that save us money while getting what we need and love and avoiding excess in the first place.

We have the tools and technology to do it.

8/ The dominant economic model since the industrial revolution has a clear objective: produce as much as possible, and get as many people to consume as possible.

9/ In 1955, economist Victor Lebow wrote: "“Our enormously productive economy demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfactions, our ego satisfactions, in consumption.”

10/ We can evolve to a higher form of consumption. We can design services that more intelligently provide us what we need and love while avoiding excess in the first place.

This is a huge and massively untapped opportunity space for entrepreneurs. #HappyEarthDay #sustainability