by Sundar Raman on 30 May 2009
Tags: consumerism, economics, human cost, production, sustainable living
I just ran into Annie Leonard’s The Story of Stuff. Given the discussions about sustainability that we’ve had here I think it’s necessary viewing. The contents can be debated to some degree, as can the format of the presentation. It’s also a bit of a downer, but hey, not everything about sustainability can be all fun and games, eh?!
Anyway, TSoS is compelling and getting more relevant every day (the presentation was created almost 2 years ago).
The Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard
If there is a bright side to all this it’s that the current economic climate is going to force at least some people to think in globally sustainable terms (vs. only about local benefit). Hopefully the concepts of sharing, and peer-based community will gain sufficient traction to start making a change to the winner-takes-all system we’ve currently got in place.
About the author:
Sundar Raman - who has written 42 articles on Fairfield Voice.
It's only fair that I say a bit about myself before I force the world to share in my deepest (darkest?) insights I guess, so here goes.
I'm a Fairfield native. Not by birth, but having been here for just about 20 years I think I can consider myself about as committed to this community as anyone out there.
I'm an Open Source advocate. This means that I have long, drawn out debates about the merits of transparency that make for very awkward dinner conversations with my more corporate friends and relatives.
I'm opinionated about most things. I'm more opinionated about things that I know absolutely nothing about than those that I know something about. I'm sure that says a lot about me to the psycho-analysts out there. (Instructions to readers of my posts: 1. procure a sizeable hunk of Himalayan Pink Salt; 2. place HPS next to computer; 3. read blog sentence; 4. lick HPS; 5. repeat steps 3-5. )
I love politics, food, travel, nature, photography, art and technology. Not in any particular order, and the more deviant and unconventional these are, the better!
So now that you know me, let's get it on ...
I've learned about how this linear process works through reading articles and books focused on specific components of the process, but never have I seen the entire thing summarized so well. This is brilliant.
The 10 solutions (posted on the web site) should be our sustainability plan's mission:
Another Way
Many people who have seen The Story of Stuff have asked what they can do to address the problems identified in the film.
Each of us can promote sustainability and justice at multiple levels: as an individual, as a teacher or parent, a community member, a national citizen, and as a global citizen. As Annie says in the film, “the good thing about such an all pervasive problem is that there are so many points of intervention.” That means that there are lots and lots of places to plug in, to get involved, and to make a difference. There is no single simple thing to do, because the set of problems we’re addressing just isn’t simple. But everyone can make a difference, but the bigger your action the bigger the difference you’ll make. Here are some ideas:
10 Little and Big Things You Can Do
1. Power down!
2. Waste less.
3. Talk to everyone about these issues.
4. Make Your Voice Heard.
5. DeTox your body, DeTox your home, and DeTox the Economy.
6. Unplug (the TV and internet) and Plug In (the community).
7. Park your car and walk…and when necessary MARCH!
8. Change your lightbulbs…and then, change your paradigm.
9. Recycle your trash…and, recycle your elected officials.
10. Buy Green, Buy Fair, Buy Local, Buy Used, and most importantly, Buy Less.
My list:
1. Hack more. I find that as I determine how products, food and my habits work, I automatically use less, am more connected to others, and get a regular dose of entertainment.
2. Buy quality, buy sensibly. I'm compelled to not restrict to 'buy local' since I've got an inherent interest (as an Indian) in the global economy. The quality automatically seems to eliminate waste.
3. Bike everywhere. We currently drive everywhere when walking seems like just a bit too much. Biking everywhere just might break that habit.
I'm interested to hear more on what you mean by "Hack More".