Waste not, want not

A wave of moral disgust is changing how we feel about waste. But changing our habits of consumption is going to be harder.

Plastic is out, bamboo toothbrushes, reusable bags, waste-free dental floss and soaps are in. Not only are we becoming more compassionate and aware about waste, we’re becoming angrier.

‘‘There’s rage out there about plastic and it’s coming to a head,’’ says Auckland University of Technology senior lecturer of marketing Sommer Kapitan.

Just as ‘‘moral disgust’’ changed how we regarded smoking, the same thing is now happening with plastic, she believes.

But the change has become apparent only in about the last three years.

Sustainability used to be considered ‘‘being green’’, and thus somewhat marginalised. Now it’s being seen as something trendy and desirable, she says.

‘‘It used to be really hippy to be ‘eco’, and now it’s fashionable.’’

Today’s 18, 19 and 20-year-olds almost expect products to contribute to health or sustainability, and consumers are wanting to appear more compassionate.

The trouble, Kapitan believes, is that behind the genuine public concern is what she calls symbolic consumption.

‘‘Looking like you’re caring can be as important as actually caring.

‘‘We have this focus on status and signalling who we are; we can be ‘green to be seen’.

‘‘People don’t want to be seen using plastic, but I think it’s mostly because they want to be seen as being green.’’

A segment of society is benevolent and altruistic and cares deeply about the environment, but a larger portion just wants to look good, she says.

Businesses have tapped into this public mood, and are now offering products that will help the planet, while also making them and their customers feel good.

‘‘You can sell anti-drinking and looking after each other as much as you can sell alcohol.’’

But while it is easy to make eco-friendly products sell, the real challenge will be reducing consumption overall. ‘‘It’s really hard to make reduction look sexy.’’

Asked if people living in poverty, in illness, or in other restricting circumstances are disadvantaged if they want to buy into environmentally friendly choices, Kapitan says such people are already living minimally, with less waste and less consumption.

Historically, people did not have all the disposable products that harm the environment today.

‘‘We created this problem by consuming a bunch of things, and now we’re trying to fix it.’’

In the days before plastic containers and bottles, people used paper and baskets.

‘‘It’s kind of obvious that this is how we should be living. We got so excited about all these things which we shouldn’t have, but now we’re realising we don’t need them.’’

Niki Harre, of the Auckland University school of psychology, believes people are becoming more aware of their personal impact on the environment, and says it’s not just a trend.

However, living a sustainable lifestyle includes a range of things, including clothing and food choices.

‘‘People might be really ecofriendly around things like food and transport and use of energy, but when it comes to clothes they choose the fast fashion that’s on the racks.

‘‘One product can get a real break around the eco-issues and the problems around it . . . plastic bags are one of those now, and everyone’s aware of them.

‘‘But no-one’s concerned about the use of plastic yoghurt cups.’’

Children will be leading social change, she says, and in many cases educating their parents.

In schools now, for instance, children are being taught they are protectors of the environment.

‘‘When seatbelt laws came in, children were taught how important they were, and they put that pressure on their parents.’’

It is the same with reusable bags. ‘‘More and more people are getting used to taking them everywhere, and we will see children being a part of that shift.’’

Those children, in 30 years’ time, could be living in a waste-free world, she says.

‘‘I think there’s a really good chance that we will be [wastefree]. The technology is moving fast . . . society is moving forward really quickly.’’

More people are banding together to be more sustainable, making it easier not to be the lone wolf.

‘‘[There are] ‘pioneers’ pushing it outwards all the time, and then there’s the people who are the last to get on board.’’

Trends show progress towards social change often begins slowly, before intensifying into more rapid change.

For waste reduction, the fastmoving stage has yet to happen.

‘‘I think the Government taking this leadership is really important, even with something as small as banning plastic bags, because it will affect the thinking of everyone.’’

Waste-free advocate Sarah Tay, who lives in Dunedin, quotes David Attenborough: ‘‘How could I look my grandchildren in the eye and say I knew about this but did nothing?’’

Like Kapitan, she draws a comparison between waste and smoking.

‘‘What I would like is that plastic bags and coffee cups have the same stigma that smoking now has.’’

Tay feels environmental discussion and activism have lost their once-negative stigma.

‘‘It’s a lot more common to be concerned about the environment and to be interested in positive change . . . people are willing and open to learning about things we have ignored.’’

However, zero-waste living runs the risk of becoming a consumer trend, rather than a genuine change, she believes.

‘‘I see a lot of products available to buy to reduce waste, which is totally contradictory.

‘‘Reducing rubbish also means buying less, and using what you have. We already own everything we need to reduce rubbish.’’

The Government, rather than individuals, needs to be leading the movement towards wastefree. ‘‘Individuals can and should do all they can, but to make widespread change, we need policy and law changes – fast.

‘‘Living waste-free can be extremely difficult in provincial towns, especially for those who are struggling to make ends meet or those who will take longer to learn about change.’’

Much of the legislation is already there, such as the Waste Minimisation Act 2008, she says.

‘‘Product stewardship laws could be introduced tomorrow.’’ This could stop packaging becoming redundant.

Tay says ‘‘compostable’’ coffee cups are only marginally better than traditional cups, because only 11 places in New Zealand can process them. ‘‘There’s a lot of ‘greenwashing’ going on, which is difficult for the novice eye to filter out.’’