Practicing conscious consumption is a daily, simple and supportive attitude that can generate a positive impact on life on the planet. This means, for example, avoiding waste, preferring environmentally responsible companies and save energy and water.
In this guide you will find everything about the concept of conscious consumption, its importance, its benefits for society and tips on how to adopt it in our daily lives.
What is conscious consumption?
Conscious consumption is the practice of consuming with the aim of minimizing environmental impactle social of individual choices, avoiding excess or waste.
It is also the act of making positive choices when purchasing any type of item, whether durable or non-durable. An example of this is buying products that are not tested on animals.
And many people are adopting the practice of conscious consumption, which is becoming a consolidating trend, as pointed out by one search of the National Confederation of Industry held in January 2023.
Among the Brazilians interviewed in the survey, 74% say they adopt sustainable habits and conscious consumption, such as separating waste for recycling and choosing responsible companies.
What is the objective of conscious consumption?
The main objective is to promote a more sustainable lifestyle, balancing your individual needs with the preservation of natural resources and their impacts.
Therefore, when adopting conscious consumption, it is important to make decisions based on information and responsibly in relation to products. To do this, it is necessary to evaluate social, economic and environmental issues.
Finally, another objective of conscious consumption is to reduce waste, choosing durable and quality products, rather than low quality and durability. Furthermore, it will promote reuse, recycling and the circular economy.
Understand the differences between consumerism and conscious consumption
They are two opposing concepts. Consumerism is a mentality without control over the acquisition of goods and services, that is, the accumulation of material. Meanwhile, conscious consumption promotes ethical and responsible shopping.
Consumerism, therefore, is characterized by an incessant search for social status, happiness and satisfaction through the purchase of products, often unnecessary. It is driven by a culture that values having more than being, leading to the depletion of natural resources, excessive waste production and social inequalities.
Finally, in short, consumerism promotes a vicious cycle of unrestrained shopping, while conscious consumption seeks a more sustainable and responsible approach.
How important is conscious consumption?
Its importance lies in the fact that this attitude can contribute to reversing climate changes and other impacts caused by global warming.
Furthermore, conscious consumption helps preserve natural resources, such as water. Only in Brazil, drinking water losses they reach 40%, a rate that is worrying.
This way of consuming is linked not only to shopping but also to the way we move around cities, how we use water, whether we separate and garbage recycling and if we fight the food waste.
Decrease the carbon footprint, buy second-hand, participate in shared economy, recycling and consuming local products are cheap, simple and accessible forms of conscious consumption.
In this sense, conscious consumption is extremely important as it causes positive social, environmental, cultural and economic changes for the planet.
When is conscious consumption day?
Conscious Consumption Day is celebrated annually on October 15th. This date was established with the aim of promoting reflection on the impacts of unrestrained consumption on society and the planet.
The main idea is to encourage people to rethink their purchasing habits and adopt a more conscious lifestyle, taking into account the principles of sustainability, ethics and social responsibility.
3 benefits of conscious consumption for society
Changing our consumption habits can bring several benefits to society at different levels: environmental, economic, social and cultural.
See below 3 benefits of conscious consumption, according to article of Akatu Institute.
- It's simple: to adopt sustainable attitudes it doesn't require a lot of time or effort, like turning off lights, turning off the tap while brushing your teeth and sorting the trash;
- Products are cheap: sustainable items can be more affordable than conventional ones when comparing the environmental costs, such as consumption of raw materials and durability, of each one;
- Small individual attitudes: this goes reflect positively on aspects such as preservation of natural resources and reducing the carbon footprint.
Sustainability and conscious consumption: understand the relationships
Sustainability concerns the ability to sustain or conserve an economic, social, cultural and/or environmental process or system.
the term sustainability appeared in the report Our Common Future, 1987, from the World Commission on Environment and Development.
In it, the concept of sustainable development, which consists of meeting present needs without compromising future generations.
Conscious consumption concerns consuming with less and better environmental impact, without excess or waste, taking into account the context of production, use and disposal.
Therefore, the relationship between sustainability and conscious consumption is causal, as the practice of conscious consumption is a consequence of sustainable development.
Sustainable development and conscious consumption: what’s the difference?
The two are similar concepts, but with some differences, despite both promoting environmental preservation and the search for a balanced future.
Sustainable development is a model of economic growth that takes into account environmental protection, social justice and human development. Furthermore, it will highlight the responsible use of resources, the reduction of pollutant emissions and social equality.
Therefore, sustainable development is a macro approach, involving politics and governments. Meanwhile, conscious consumption refers to individual action to make this transformation happen.
Why should companies encourage conscious consumption?
Companies must encourage because the planet is experiencing a global environmental crisis that has already brought irreversible consequences to the environment.
A portion of Brazilians are already concerned about the product they consume and the effects of this production on the environment, such as carbon emissions and waste generation.
For 53% of survey respondents Sustainable Habits and Conscious Consumption, from the National Confederation of Industry, it has become a habit to check whether the product was produced in an environmentally sustainable way whenever they make a purchase.
Examples of conscious consumption
There are several examples of conscious consumption that we can adopt, from the simplest and cheapest to some more complex, but effective.
The simplest examples are avoiding wasting water, whether when bathing, cleaning the house or brushing your teeth, and food, with shopping planning.
Another practical and easy example is to check the origin of the items consumed, whether there is any type of sustainable certification, if it is cruelty-free (produced without cruelty to animals) and if the footprint of carbon was compensated.
More complex and higher-cost examples are the implementation of a data capture system solar energy, whether at home or at work, and the use of electric vehicles.
20 conscious consumption tips for your daily life
Adopting this practice can positively influence our lives and life on the planet.
There are simple and efficient ways of conscious consumption in your daily life, ranging from reading a product label to separating waste for recycling.
See below 20 tips on conscious consumption habits that you can incorporate into your daily life, according to Akatu Institute, It is here you can test what type of consumer you are.
- Try to consume products from environmentally responsible companies. Research, for example, whether the company tests on animals, whether it has environmental policies and projects, whether practices reverse logistics, the carbon footprint is compensated, among other points;
- Evaluate and consider the need to make a certain purchase; ask yourself if that item is necessary and useful at that moment;
- Refuse plastic bags when shopping at markets, fairs and supermarkets. Use ecobags and cardboard boxes instead of bags;
- Separate dry waste from organic waste. If possible, have a compost bin for decomposition of organic matter. Sanitize and separate dry waste for recycling, such as plastic items, aluminum, glass and cardboard;
- Avoid food waste by planning purchases, menus and quantities consumed daily or weekly;
- Give preference to seasonal products, produced locally and sold in open-air markets, for example;
- Whenever possible, buy used, second-hand durable goods, such as clothes, books, toys, electronics and furniture;
- Use collective public transport, when possible, instead of individual public transport, and alternative means of transport, such as cycling;
- When to ask for one delivery of food, dispense with plastic items whenever possible;
- Consider switching from gasoline to ethanol for flex-fuel vehicles. O ethanol emits less CO2 than gasoline, therefore it is a cleaner fuel;
Conscious energy consumption
- Use and abuse natural light in your home, office and business. Avoid turning on lights unnecessarily and turn off lights when leaving a room;
- Keep windows open for natural ventilation, whenever possible, to avoid using air conditioning;
- Unplug electronic devices when they are not in use;
- Avoid opening the refrigerator unnecessarily, as the hot air makes the refrigerator motor work harder to cool it down again, using more energy;
- Swap fluorescent lamps for LED lamps, which have a longer lifespan and are more efficient.
Conscious water consumption
- Reduce the time in the shower and close the shower whenever you apply shampoo and conditioner;
- Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth;
- Fix water leaks at home;
- Reuse washing machine water for other household tasks;
- Wash dishes only with as much water as necessary. First wash all items and then rinse them, avoiding leaving the tap open.
