Can We Buy Our Way Out of Global Climate Change ?

IAN GREGSON

Vancouver seems to be playing a central role in the movement towards developing consumer-driven solutions to avoid global climate change.



Two recent events of note were the EPIC (Ethical, Progressive, Intelligent, Consumer) show at Canada Place and the publication of a new magazine "Granville" from the publishers of BC Business magazine. Both these not so distantly related events promoted spending our way out of the global climate crisis - a solution that is doomed to fail.

The principle of spending your way out of a recession is all too familiar: a government pours millions, often billions, of taxpayer's money into projects that provide employment and thus stimulate the economy - a sort of jump start for a run down economic battery. This principle has been used by many levels of government in the last century, from the work projects of the 1930's to the hosting of the Vancouver Olympics in 2010.

This same principle is being applied to the environmental crisis that faces our planet. Some would have us believe that we can spend our way out of global climate change. We see strong messages from the private sector that claim to address the problem. The messages range from "ethically produced coffee" to "environmentally sound homes" to "cars that run on virtually no gas". All marketed at the consumer that has some level of global conscience and the deep pockets to make an investment. Sometimes the marketing is just plain ludicrous.

At the EPIC event we saw the Porsche SUV, one of the most environmentally unfriendly vehicles on the road today, being touted as a solution. A leasing company was offering as an incentive the planting of trees in Mission to offset the carbon emissions of the vehicle! Yet the marketing did not address the manufacturing process of the vehicle, the thousands of kilograms of metal, plastic and unrecyclable material in the vehicle. And while this was an extreme example, there were many similar "guilt reduction" strategies being employed at the event.

Similarly the new magazine "Granville", published by Peter Legge* (see footnote), is attempting to profit by marketing solutions to the upcoming environmental catastrophe. The magazine's mission is to inform and entertain, while providing a medium for their advertisers to flog "green choices" to readers. The message is that your lifestyle doesn't have to change a bit, just keep on spending! Ads for Toyota and other large manufacturers abound in the magazine. Even the most carbon reducing car is still a car, its manufacturing process still requires vast amounts of raw material -an issue most people neglect to consider in an environmental footprint.


Taking environmental issues at face value is not going to stop the impending climate change. People have to start taking into consideration all the factors that bring products and services into our lives. How far did that tomato travel to get to your kitchen counter ? What manufacturing processes did that knife go through in order to be in your kitchen ? How far did your kitchen counter travel to be in your kitchen ? Until we start looking at every single item we consume in a more responsible way, we will continue to rape the planet of its resources and in time we all will have to pay the price.

While at first glance the task of tracking all our consumables seems onerous, if it is made part of a more transparent manufacturing process via the manufacturer's web site then the onus rests with manufacturer not wholly on the consumer. However, it will be the consumer who ultimately decides on how transparent the process is and who will use his or her buying power to decide which products meet the mark.

We cannot allow ourselves to remain passive consumers any longer. We all need to take some responsibility for the products we consume; starting with their use of raw material, manufacturing, employment standards, transportation, packaging and ultimate disposal after use. What we will find is that all of a sudden we do not need as many products as we once thought, and we will consume less.

Footnote:
For more than 40 years, Peter Legge has embodied the gutsy spirit of the entrepreneur. A savvy businessman with an uncanny ability to identify opportunities, Peter successfully developed what began as a small-circulation television listings magazine called TV Week into the foundation of a top Canadian enterprise. As President and CEO of Canada Wide Magazines and Communications Ltd., Peter leads the largest independently owned publishing company in Western Canada, producing more than 30 titles, with annual revenues in excess of $25 million. (from http://www.peterlegge.com)