Buy when you need something, but only what you need. Buy better quality products that can be repaired and last a long time. Eschew throw away consumerism. Repurpose products when these products are no longer needed. With these rules, people will buy less but better, putting much less pressure on Mother Earth. It is a possible solution to reducing the effects of climate change.
It seems almost quaint: Live so you are comfortable but still not deplete the world’s resources. This is called doughnut economics. The third world should strive to bring up their standard of living, but the first world should not live beyond their means and deplete the world’s resources. Huh?
Amsterdam Doughnut Economics
It seems pretty reasonable, really. China, India and other poorer countries strive to economically improve and pull people out of poverty. That can only be a good thing. But then you have the first world countries consuming way beyond their means, because they are rich and because they can. As China and India improve, why should they not also consume beyond the earth’s means as well? The reason is that the world will then be depleted and we, as a species, will all suffer.
