New American Dream
My sustainability class [geez, is this where I get all my information? I should start researching on my own haha] brought me to an online community called The Center for a New American Dream that basically espouses the idea of sustainability in all walks of life. I didn’t check out all parts of the site, but I read their mission/vision and a few blogs about consumption.
Their idea goes a little like this: the American dream is one of hope for a better life and future for generations to come. However, this dream has recently transformed to a mentality of “more is better” and “out with the old, in with the new.” Not everyone thinks this way, but a vast majority of companies market this idea with their fancy-shmancy advertising and/or cheap prices, and then we’re hooked.
Regardless, communities like New American Dream show that people are starting to change. With the green movement becoming fashionable [and businesses profitting from making 'green' items] people are becoming aware of environmental impacts. However, lifestyle changes are not possible for some people and it’s difficult to change on a large scale, especially if the infrastructure isn’t there. With the economy as it is now, who knows when we will be able to reorganize government policies to accomodate environmentally friendly lifestyles. And, as unfortunate as it is, being eco-friendly isn’t always cheap…I might write more on this later.
I’m not saying that we should all stop buying objects that are wants instead of needs. Go ahead and consume! BUT, even though it takes more time, we should try to investigate the origins of our items beforehand. Or invest in items that will not need to be replaced within the near future.
One blog post I read had a great take-away message that I felt needed to be shared:
“There are lots of ways to renew, while still making our lives more recognizable to ourselves. Maybe our culture is moving back in the direction of holding on to things. It’s good practice for creating a life full of texture and grasp-able things. Tellingly, when something is really worn it becomes well-worn. Worn the way it’s supposed to be. Here’s to the old, the renewed, and the new with the promise of becoming well-worn.”