tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/ethical-shopper-1622/articlesEthical shopper – The Conversation2022-11-23T19:12:23Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1929442022-11-23T19:12:23Z2022-11-23T19:12:23ZWe know sweatshop clothing is bad – and buy it anyway. Here’s how your brain makes excuses<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496907/original/file-20221123-13-l30f2x.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3959%2C2976&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>You face a dilemma. You’ve found the perfect shirt, and it’s an absolute bargain, but you notice it’s “Made in Bangladesh”. You’re conscious it was probably made using cheap labour. Do you buy it, or walk away? </p>
<p>Today Oxfam released its annual <a href="https://www.oxfam.org.au/what-she-makes/naughty-or-nice-2022/">Naughty or Nice</a> list. This list highlights retail brands committed to transparent sourcing, separating labour costs in price negations, and conducting a wage gap analysis to work towards paying workers a living wage.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496939/original/file-20221123-22-9nzv15.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Oxfam’s 2022 Naughty or Nice list.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Oxfam</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>This list is one of several resources trying to encourage ethical consumption. Yet despite concerns of sweatshop labour, and consumers claiming they’re <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-10-2976-9_5">willing to pay more</a> for ethically-sourced clothes, there remains high demand for ultra-low-price mass-produced clothing.</p>
<p>The explanation lies in a psychological phenomenon called <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/psychology/motivated-reasoning">motivated reasoning</a>. It explains how people convince themselves sweatshop labour is actually okay, as long as the product is desirable.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/brands-are-leaning-on-recycled-clothes-to-meet-sustainability-goals-how-are-they-made-and-why-is-recycling-them-further-so-hard-184406">Brands are leaning on 'recycled' clothes to meet sustainability goals. How are they made? And why is recycling them further so hard?</a>
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<h2>The many costs of low-priced apparel</h2>
<p>Consumption is an individualistic act. It allows us to distinguish ourselves through our clothing, culture, and even the entertainment we consume. <a href="https://www.cairn.info/revue-rimhe-2016-5-page-45.htm">Ethical consumption</a> is when consumers consider the wider environmental and societal impacts of what they consume, including <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0267257X.2012.659280">when they purchase clothing</a>.</p>
<p>Revenue from the global apparel market is expected to reach <a href="https://www.statista.com/topics/5091/apparel-market-worldwide/#topicHeader__wrapper">US$2 trillion</a> (about A$3 trillion) by 2026. Asia remains the garment factory of the world. It accounts for 55% of global textiles and clothing exports, and employs some <a href="https://www.ilo.org/asia/media-centre/news/WCMS_848238/lang--en/index.htm">60 million workers</a>. </p>
<p>And the International Labour Organisation has estimated <a href="https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_norm/---ipec/documents/publication/wcms_797515.pdf">160 million children</a> aged 5 to 17 were engaged in child labour at the beginning of 2020 – many of whom would have worked in the fashion supply chain.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/odnUdaAN9SE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Oxfam’s What She Makes campaign is demanding that big brands pay a living wage to the women who make our clothes.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>Isn’t any job better than no job?</h2>
<p>A common defence by manufacturers that use exploitative labour arrangements is that such work is often <a href="https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1008&context=csspe">the best option available</a> for those workers. Workers voluntarily accept the conditions, and their employment helps with <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12122-006-1006-z">long-term economic development</a>. </p>
<p>At the same time, emerging research argues sweatshops are the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0950017020926372">result of consumer choice</a>, wherein retailers are simply responding to a demand for ultra-low-price fashion. This infers that if there was no demand, there would be no sweatshops.</p>
<p>But one problem with holding consumers responsible is that the vast majority aren’t aware of how their clothes are made. Despite “supply chain transparency” being credited for increasing <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/cb.1852">brand legitimacy and trust</a>, true transparency is <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10304312.2021.1993575?scroll=top&needAccess=true">difficult to attain</a>, even for retailers, due to the disjointed and <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2022/03/18/why-fashion-supply-chain-traceability-is-a-tech-challenge-that-begins-with-ai/?sh=362e093d5f6d">distant elements</a> of how products move through the supply chain (which includes suppliers, producers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers).</p>
<p>Our own <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JFMM-06-2021-0158/full/html">research</a> into consumers’ perception of worker welfare found people struggle to connect the $5 shirt they bought with the person who made it, or how it was made.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/i-can-only-do-so-much-we-asked-fast-fashion-shoppers-how-ethical-concerns-shape-their-choices-172978">'I can only do so much': we asked fast-fashion shoppers how ethical concerns shape their choices</a>
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<h2>Motivated reasoning</h2>
<p>Oxfam’s Naughty or Nice list aims to name (and essentially shame) retail brands that fail to disclose which factories they source product from, and how they manage sourcing integrity. The logic is that if consumers are aware of which brands disclose their ethical sourcing strategies, then they’ll make more informed purchase decisions. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. Our brains are wired to arrive at conclusions we prefer, as long as we maintain an <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/1991-06436-001.pdf?auth_token=dfa958470d287abcbf517c0362958f295e8fff44">illusion of objectivity</a>. And we do this even when the evidence is contrary to our beliefs.</p>
<p>A person can consider themselves an ethical consumer (which forms part of their “<a href="https://positivepsychology.com/self-concept/">self-concept</a>”) and still buy a $5 shirt, though they suspect it may have been made in a sweatshop. They may tell themselves “any job is better than no job” for workers, or “money saved today is money to spend on the children tomorrow”. In doing so they convince themselves they have objectively considered the purchase.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1509/jmkr.45.6.633">theory of self-concept</a> explains how consumers can justify the “ethical burden” away. It also suggests people use higher-order thinking to rationalise and <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1207/s15327957pspr0303_3">justify personal transgressions</a>.</p>
<p>Most of us are so distant from supply chain exploitation, and so hooked on scoring a bargain, that seeing a list of “naughty” retail brands won’t change our behaviour. </p>
<h2>Evidence of motivated reasoning</h2>
<p>Researchers have studied how we use motivated reasoning to arrive at <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0749597813000149">more preferable outcomes</a> that help protect our self-concept.</p>
<p>In one experiment they examined whether participants would use economic justifications (such as “any job is better than no job”) to book a Caribbean holiday at a resort associated with questionable labour practices. They found participants were likely to rationalise their choice and take the holiday despite claims of exploitative working conditions. </p>
<p>In a second study they explored the link between justifications for sweatshop labour and product desirability. As predicted, economic justifications were higher for highly desirable sweatshop-made shoes. Other studies have found motivated reasoning being employed to justify <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0146167299025001003">keeping overpayments</a> and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10551-017-3698-9">self-allocating annual bonuses</a>, among <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17524032.2014.932817">other examples</a>. </p>
<h2>How can you shop more ethically?</h2>
<p>The bottom line is ethical consumption must be internally motivated. The good news is once you have this motivation, there are a number of resources to help you. </p>
<p><strong>Knowledge is power</strong></p>
<p>Oxfam’s Naughty or Nice report, Clean Clothes’ <a href="https://cleanclothes.org/campaigns/the-accord/brand-tracker">Brand Tracker</a>, <a href="https://www.fairwear.org/">Fair Wear</a>, <a href="https://goodonyou.eco/about/">Good On You</a>, and Fashion Revolution’s <a href="https://www.fashionrevolution.org/about/transparency/">Fashion Transparency Index</a> are all great resources to identify which brands disclose their social policies, practices, and impacts in their operations and supply chain. </p>
<p><strong>Brand accreditations</strong></p>
<p>Most brands will disclose if they have their ethical credentials certified by organisations such as <a href="https://ethicalclothingaustralia.org.au/about/">Ethical Clothing Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.wrapcompliance.org/">WRAP</a> or <a href="https://www.fairtrade.net/about/certification">Fairtrade International</a>. These <a href="https://ethicalclothingaustralia.org.au/steps-to-accreditation/">accreditations</a> generally involve a rigorous process of independent eligibility tests, compliance with guidelines and external annual audits. </p>
<p><strong>Self-reporting</strong></p>
<p>Many leading brands provide their policies on ethical sourcing and slave labour online (see <a href="https://www.kmart.com.au/modernslavery/">Kmart and Target</a> and <a href="https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/docs/default-source/sustainability/sustainability-documents/2108261641-wesfarmers-approach-to-human-rights.pdf?sfvrsn=237912bb_20#xd_co_f=ODY2ZWYyMGYtMDY4My00ZmQ1LTg4NmEtNjBjOTM0YmFhM2Nm%7E">Wesfarmers</a>). Make sure the claims are made in accordance with reporting requirements from <a href="https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/criminal-justice/Pages/modern-slavery.aspx">Australia’s Modern Slavery Act 2018</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/modern-slavery-how-consumers-can-make-a-difference-163603">Modern slavery: how consumers can make a difference</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192944/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A psychological mechanism called ‘motivated reasoning’ helps us justify the ethical burden away.Gary Mortimer, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Queensland University of TechnologyLouise Grimmer, Senior Lecturer in Retail Marketing, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1515722020-12-09T03:48:21Z2020-12-09T03:48:21ZLooking to buy a gift for your child’s teacher? Here’s how to be ethical about it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373245/original/file-20201207-21-1izx5qd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/kindergarten-schoolgirl-giving-gift-her-female-1279938949">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>This year, many of us have come to appreciate, perhaps more than before, the incredible work teachers do. We may wish to show our appreciation with a gift. </p>
<p>But what kind of gift will show our gratitude while ensuring we’re being ethical, too? </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/exhausted-beyond-measure-what-teachers-are-saying-about-covid-19-and-the-disruption-to-education-143601">'Exhausted beyond measure': what teachers are saying about COVID-19 and the disruption to education</a>
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<h2>What are the rules about gifts?</h2>
<p>The key ethical concepts to consider when giving a gift to a teacher is undue influence and a conflict of interest, whether they be <a href="https://www.vit.vic.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/104948/Gifts-benefits-and-hospitality-policy.pdf">perceived, potential or real</a>. </p>
<p>Public perception of the acceptance of a gift is important. In <a href="https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/downloads/about/qcaa_policy_gifts_benefits.pdf">ethics policies and codes of conduct</a> it can be affected by factors such as whether the gift was given in secret, the relationship between the giver and the receiver, and the magnitude and frequency of giving. </p>
<p>Teaching is an <a href="https://cdn.qct.edu.au/pdf/Promotion_TPQ.pdf">exposed profession</a> when it comes to public perception — everyone has gone through the education system and has an opinion. The paradox is that public perception of teaching as a profession can differ from the warm and appreciative perceptions individuals often have of their own child’s teacher. </p>
<p>This means any gift, benefit or hospitality given to a teacher must not be easily considered a kind of <a href="https://www.vit.vic.edu.au/professional-responsibilities/conduct-and-ethics">bribe for special treatment</a>, such as giving a specific grade to your child.</p>
<p>Each gift comes with some risk to the reputation of a teacher. Cash and items that can be easily exchanged for cash, such as shares, are generally forbidden. Parents should assume it is inappropriate to gift a teacher money for a nice dinner out, or an expensive piece of jewellery.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-learning-more-important-than-well-being-teachers-told-us-how-covid-highlighted-ethical-dilemmas-at-school-144854">Is learning more important than well-being? Teachers told us how COVID highlighted ethical dilemmas at school</a>
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<p>Each state and territory has its own gifts and benefits policies when it comes to ethical codes of conduct.</p>
<p>In Tasmania a <a href="https://publicdocumentcentre.education.tas.gov.au/library/Document%20Centre/Gifts-Benefits-and-Hospitality-Policy.pdf">gift must be worth less</a> than A$100 and teachers must report offers of cash to their <a href="https://publicdocumentcentre.education.tas.gov.au/library/Document%20Centre/Gifts-Benefits-and-Hospitality-Policy.pdf">head of department and Tasmania Police</a>. Whereas in the <a href="https://policies.education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/code-of-conduct-policy/DoE-Gifts-Benefits-Hospitality-procedures-2020.pdf">New South Wales Code of Conduct</a> teachers must politely refuse gifts worth more than $50 (see Section 10.4) but can request approval for them. </p>
<p>In Queensland, teachers need to declare most gifts in a form. The gifts must be approved by the school and recorded on the public gift register. Gifts worth more than $150 will also be evaluated for appropriateness but those <a href="https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/downloads/about/qcaa_policy_gifts_benefits.pdf">over $350 are unlikely</a> to be approved.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Many books." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373731/original/file-20201209-19-11gp69z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Book vouchers that can’t be exchanged for cash can be a great gift.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/many-old-books-book-shop-library-269516258">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>In <a href="http://det.wa.edu.au/policies/detcms/policy-planning-and-accountability/policies-framework/policies/acceptance-and-provision-of-gifts-policy-and-procedures.en?cat-id=3457081">Western Australia</a> a teacher can accept any minor gift valued less than $100 — such as chocolates, flowers, wine or jewellery — without declaring them. Other types of gifts such as consumables (event tickets) or property (mobile phones, computers) must be declared, registered and approved by the principal or director. Any gift over $1,000 cannot be kept for personal use.</p>
<p>In Victoria, a “gift of appreciation” valued at $100 or less from parents or guardians to a teacher can be accepted and <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/department/DET-gifts-benefits-hospitality-policy.pdf">does not need to be declared</a>.</p>
<h2>So, what can I give?</h2>
<p>The questions you need to ask yourself before giving a gift are:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>can I be certain the gift is simply a demonstration of my gratitude for exemplary but complete teaching (such as end of year or semester), and not loaded with further expectations, such as a public acknowledgement or favours? </p></li>
<li><p>is my gift excessive or could it be considered inappropriate? </p></li>
<li><p>can my gift be exchanged for cash? </p></li>
<li><p>am I a serial gift-giver? If so, calculate the total value of the gifts you have given to ensure they can’t be perceived as excessive or pressure for special treatment.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Some ethical gift ideas include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>your favourite book, or a book voucher that <a href="https://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/buying-products-and-services/ways-to-shop-and-pay/gift-cards-and-vouchers">can’t be exchanged for cash</a>. </p></li>
<li><p>a silk tie or colourful scarf, but not more intimate clothing</p></li>
<li><p>scented candles, an engraved pen, a bound notebook or a small item from the antique store, as long as they are reasonably priced</p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/feeling-pressured-to-buy-christmas-presents-read-this-and-think-twice-before-buying-candles-150174">regifting a quality item</a>, making a thank you card with your child, or planting some succulents in a nice pot</p></li>
<li><p>getting together with other students’ families for a bigger gift. In Victoria a gift valued at over $500 may be approved if <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/department/DET-gifts-benefits-hospitality-policy.pdf">offered by multiple students or carers</a>. In Western Australia, a <a href="http://det.wa.edu.au/policies/detcms/policy-planning-and-accountability/policies-framework/policies/acceptance-and-provision-of-gifts-policy-and-procedures.en?cat-id=3457081">teacher could be given a holiday trip</a> as a farewell gift from a group of graduating students. So long as the teacher completes the required declaration and the gift is internally approved, the teacher can take the opportunity as a personal, private trip without requesting official travel approval</p></li>
<li><p>making donations on your teacher’s behalf. In NSW, <a href="https://policies.education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/sponsorship-policy/PD-2005-0295-02-SponsProc.pdf">it is acceptable</a> to donate a large sum of money, such as $1,000 to the school library for resources, or for playground equipment. But consult with your school about the process of such donations</p></li>
<li><p>if you know your teacher has a special interest in, for instance, environmental protection, equal educational access for girls, or the provision of medical assistance to children in war-torn areas, you could give a tax-deductable donation to a reputable charity, on their behalf.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>South Australia’s education department also <a href="https://www.education.sa.gov.au/webforms/thanked">invites students and parents</a> to say a public thanks to their teacher on an online form.</p>
<p>The last ethical consideration is to ask yourself where the intended gift came from. Was it made ethically, on a living wage? Can it be recycled or made sustainably? Does it support a local industry or artist? Would your teacher like to know you have made a donation to a worthy cause on their behalf?</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/five-ways-to-reduce-your-eco-footprint-this-christmas-51735">Five ways to reduce your eco-footprint this Christmas</a>
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<p>If you are thinking about showing your appreciation to your teacher, it might be best to ask them what they would like, or what the school might need, to be sure they will be able to enjoy it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/151572/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniella J. Forster does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Every state and territory has its own rules when it comes to the kinds of gifts teachers can receive. But there are general principles to consider that are the same everywhere.Daniella J. Forster, Senior Lecturer, Educational ethics and philosophies, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1289682019-12-17T16:32:31Z2019-12-17T16:32:31ZWhat the 19th-century fad for anti-slavery sugar can teach us about ethical Christmas gifts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307440/original/file-20191217-58292-nlmvmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sweet and toil. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/granulated-white-sugar-spoon-some-cubes-1138338317">Losmandarinas</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>With shopping days to Christmas fast running out, how many of us are thinking about the ethics behind what we buy? This can be a difficult area to understand, since data on ethical consumption is very thin on the ground. One indicator, the <a href="https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/research-hub/uk-ethical-consumer-markets-report">Ethical Consumer Markets Report 2018</a>, points to good news and bad news in the recent past. </p>
<p>In 2017, the most recent year for which data is available, the average person in the UK spent £1,238 on ethical purchases, compared to £542 ten years earlier. That’s a rise of over £500 per head even after inflation is <a href="https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/inflation/inflation-calculator">taken into account</a> – although <a href="https://journal.ethicalconsumer.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/JCE_2018_1_21_28-Boyce-Harrison.pdf">we need to be</a> slightly cautious with this kind of information because the data is based on products that have been categorised as ethical. It ignores the fact that people sometimes buy them for other reasons, such as health or availability. </p>
<p>Year on year, the report painted a mixed picture. There was a 20% rise in UK purchases of ethical clothing and a 23% rise in purchases of second-hand clothing for environmental reasons. Ethical food and drink purchases rose 16% and green energy spending grew 56%. Yet this was offset by an 87% drop in sales of solar panels and a 28% drop in sales of energy-efficient cars. This was because the government <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jul/19/subsidies-for-new-household-solar-panels-to-end-next-year">subsidies</a> had <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/12/scrapping-uk-grants-for-hybrid-cars-astounding-says-industry">been</a> shifted to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-to-go-further-and-faster-to-tackle-climate-change">other areas</a>. </p>
<p>We also shouldn’t assume that purchases of ethical goods will keep on increasing over time, just like the ten-year data seems to show. In fact, history tells us to be careful here. One interesting case study that I was <a href="http://links.springernature.com/f/a/MXbayq5ppqzLY0e83wU9lg%7E%7E/AABE5gA%7E/RgRfmWD-P0QwaHR0cDovL3d3dy5zcHJpbmdlci5jb20vLS8yL0FXNFhjYklMRjJmd1B0OVNSbnFtVwNzcGNCCgAAfi24XUlWgXJSHEplbm5pZmVyLmpvaG5zQGJyaXN0b2wuYWMudWtYBAAABuc%7E">involved in</a> examining is that of rise and fall of free-labour sugar. It highlights just how little power consumers may actually have when it comes to ethical shopping, and how we need to put more pressure on businesses and governments to do the right thing.</p>
<p>In late 18th century Britain, several sugar producers started offering consumers a choice between slave-produced and free-labour sugar. Many housewives chose the free-labour sugar, even though it cost more. They had the support of leading businessmen such as the potter Josiah Wedgewood, who produced a <a href="https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/collections/research/sankofa/legacies-slavery/item-186990.aspx">custom sugar bowl</a> advertising to the afternoon tea guest the moral decision of their host. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307442/original/file-20191217-58311-1je6uq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wedgewood’s bowl.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/collections/research/sankofa/legacies-slavery/item-186990.aspx">Liverpool Museum</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Yet in the 1830s, free-labour sugar was withdrawn from the marketplace. This wasn’t because people had stopped buying it. The businessmen who had been selling the sugar had died or retired, and the next generation did not continue to sell the product. Also the government had <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Slavery-Abolition-Act">abolished slavery</a> in 1833, and imposed tariffs on slave sugar which meant there was no longer a need for a separate free-labour category. </p>
<p>These tariffs were lifted a few years later, however, creating a free market in sugar again. People would have been aware that the cheap sugar on the market now came from slave plantations, but they bought it in large quantities anyway. Public concerns had moved on to other issues, such as child labour and safety in British factories. </p>
<p>What does this tell us about ethical consumption in our own era? One lesson is that consumers are arguably the least powerful agents in the whole retail system: they can only buy what businesses are offering. Though there are alternatives like second-hand clothes or <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-a-sustainable-future-we-need-to-reconnect-with-what-were-eating-and-each-other-123490">sharing initiatives</a>, they are only marginal in terms of the market as a whole. </p>
<p>Ethical product lines can disappear as easily as they arrive. For instance, the fair trade model is <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-a-very-merry-christmas-for-fairtrade-chocolate-69761">under threat</a> because of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jul/23/fairtrade-ethical-certification-supermarkets-sainsburys">questions</a> about its purpose and effectiveness. There is a great danger here of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. </p>
<h2>Beyond ethical lines</h2>
<p>Another implication of the free-labour sugar story is that our focus should not just be on ethical products. To challenge the modern-day equivalents of slave sugar, we should be seeking to ensure that all products and services that we consumer are made, sourced, transported and sold under ethical conditions. This won’t be true of the vast majority of the gifts that we place under the Christmas tree this year. Many of them will have involved the exploitation of labour, unsafe and insecure working conditions, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/some-people-trapped-in-modern-slavery-are-underworked-and-they-pay-a-heavy-price-for-it-99863">more extreme forms</a> of modern slavery and human trafficking. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307443/original/file-20191217-58311-1tor0d9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Not really made by elves.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/presents-gifts-under-christmas-tree-winter-530221042">Pro-stock Studio</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This is not simply a question of recognising the power of businesses to create more ethical products. Firms are under pressure to generate profits for shareholders. Many will be <a href="https://www.drapersonline.com/news/further-redundancies-loom-at-asos/7038061.article">downsizing or eliminating teams</a> working on areas like ethical supply and corporate social responsibility – often without consumers knowing anything about it. </p>
<p>Government regulation can also have an effect, which underlines the need for political pressure to enforce positive change. New regulations are just as likely to make things worse as better, just like the 1830s tariffs removed slave sugar from shelves for a few years before later policy changes allowed it back again. </p>
<p>In 2015, for instance, the UK government introduced the <a href="https://journal.ethicalconsumer.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/JCE_2018_1_38_48-Webb.pdf">Modern Slavery Act</a>, which required supply chains to be more transparent. This did raise the profile of modern slavery, and brought it to the attention of company boards. But the new rules were framed in such a way that they effectively passed the responsibility for supply-chain monitoring from the government to companies. </p>
<p>The recent UK election would have been a good opportunity to bring this out in the open, but the three largest political parties <a href="https://assets-global.website-files.com/5da42e2cae7ebd3f8bde353c/5dda924905da587992a064ba_Conservative%202019%20Manifesto.pdf">barely</a> mentioned <a href="https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Real-Change-Labour-Manifesto-2019.pdf">modern slavery</a> in their election <a href="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/libdems/pages/57307/attachments/original/1574684060/Stop_Brexit_and_Build_a_Brighter_Future.pdf?1574684060">manifestos</a>. None of them said anything about ethical consumption either. </p>
<p>In short, consumers need to make businesses and politicians care more about these issues. They can try to enact change by supporting ethical brands, or by putting pressure on businesses if they are shareholders or investors. They also need to question highly exploitative business practices that are taken as the norm. As <a href="http://awajfoundation.org/staff/nazma-akter/">Nazma Akter</a>, a Bangladeshi union leader, recently expressed to me: “If you see buy one get one free, someone is paying. It’s not you in the UK, it is the Bangladeshi workers living in slums.” </p>
<p>As we saw from the case of free-labour sugar, people should never take ethical products for granted. Advancing ethical consumption is a constant battle. We need to keep fighting, one Christmas present at a time.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128968/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jennifer Johns received funding DFID/British Academy, grant number TS170023.
</span></em></p>After several decades in which many housewives turned their backs on slave sugar, it suddenly made a comeback.Jennifer Johns, Reader in International Business, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/888142017-12-22T09:36:09Z2017-12-22T09:36:09ZWhat to do if you find a cry for help in your Christmas presents this year<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198759/original/file-20171212-9416-l29k0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">gpointstudio/Shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Earlier this month, 13-year-old April Dorsett got an advent calendar in the post. It was from her dad, newspapers <a href="http://www.retailhellunderground.com/.a/6a00e54f10a098883401b7c93a140f970b-pi">reported</a>, but the note inside read: “Help me please. PMP staff are evil.” PMP is an agency that recruits Amazon’s distribution centre workers. April’s mum photographed the note and posted it on Facebook to Amazon saying she “found this inside of her box and is worried amazon are running sweatshops … I’ve told her it’s probably a prank but can you just confirm that?”</p>
<p>This isn’t an unusual story. Messages like this are one of the most direct ways to bring trade justice issues into spaces and acts of consumption. Whether by activists or factory workers, whether by accident or by design, whether genuine or fake, this form of commodity activism is called “shop dropping” (or sometimes “droplifting”). It’s the opposite of shoplifting. It adds extra surprise to giving and receiving presents. It’s a treasure hunt for everyone to enjoy. </p>
<p>This holiday season, your mum might find in the shoes that you buy her a note with a strange drawing and some writing you can’t decipher. Your sister might find in the side pocket of the pair of cargo pants you get her (which she pretends to like) a note in another language. You might find a note in the fancy paper bag containing the wellington boots that you buy for yourself that starts “HELP, HELP, HELP”. You might turn on the new laptop or smartphone your partner buys you to find photos or some film footage of the people who worked on its production line, just doing their work, or looking you right in the eye, smiling and making peace signs with their hands. These messages may be anonymous or they may be signed. They don’t always get into the news (although <a href="https://followtheblog.org/2013/03/22/paper-activism-in-store-in-things-on-things/">all of these examples did</a>). They don’t always get noticed. But they do keep appearing. </p>
<h2>What to do</h2>
<p>If you want to find messages in your presents, you will have to be vigilant. If you do find one, you will have a responsibility to the person who wrote it. If you decide to make it public, our shopdropping research says that this is how its story could unfold:</p>
<ol>
<li>You take a photograph of your message and upload it to a platform like Facebook or Reddit.</li>
<li>You explain what you have found, with what commodity and ask if anyone else has found something like this.</li>
<li>(Optional) you tag the brand or retailer to ask them what’s going on and to confirm any claims made. </li>
<li>If it’s a note that’s written in a language that you don’t understand, you ask for help with a translation.</li>
<li>Sometimes when it’s a HELP or SOS message, the person writing it is asking you to do something, like “let my family know or anybody [know] that I am in prison” or “resend this letter to the World Human Right Organisation”. You might want to do this.</li>
<li>Your post might get shared to others on social media who are intrigued by the mystery and are excited to get to the bottom of it.</li>
<li>It might get picked up by your local newspaper as an amusing shopping story, and then by a national newspaper if you’re lucky.</li>
</ol>
<p>If this final step happens, the comments on your online story may get really lively. People will wade in with all kinds of practical suggestions for finding the real person, worry that the brand might find and sack them (and say you helped by tagging them), feel bad for laughing, accuse you of faking the message for five minutes of fame, join angry, sarcastic, philosophical debates on the nature and history of free market capitalism, suggest conspiracy theories that the brand has engineered this scandal, debate the wider ethics of Christmas and consumerism … you won’t believe it until you see it. </p>
<p>But your post will have helped to keep alive important debates about trade justice and global capitalism – debates many of us know about but are not attracted to take part in. At Christmas, or at all.</p>
<h2>Shopdropped?</h2>
<p>I’m always on the hunt for my personal message. Last year I found my first. I’d bought our daughter a JVC wireless hifi system for her birthday. Opening the box, we noticed a piece of masking tape on one of the speaker grills. With some handwriting on it: 天线凹. I posted photos on Facebook and sent one to my niece who had studied Mandarin in Beijing. She asked her Chinese friend and the translation pinged back later the same day.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=318&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=318&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=318&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/198758/original/file-20171212-9432-1ldc71t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Facebook message.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ian Cook</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“There’s a dent in the aerial”– that’s what it said. A note accidentally left there after it had been through quality control in the factory. Maybe. The aerial didn’t have a dent in it – it must have been replaced. We’d been accidentally shopdropped. This wasn’t a plea for help, it was a tiny trace of the labour that went into making that thing. A tiny trace of the life and work of a factory worker who had helped make this hifi system for me to buy for my daughter. </p>
<p>Christmas shopdropping isn’t the kind of activism that congratulates us for buying ethically or berates us for conspicuously over-consuming. Buying, giving and getting gifts can be emotionally charged and delicate enough already. Shopdropping vigilance goes with the festive flow. When presents are opened, you search for messages from people who helped to make them for, or deliver them to, everyone there. If you find one, you might read it out and discuss what to do with it (using the list above). </p>
<p>So, this holiday season, let’s think about the people who made our presents. Appreciate what they have done for us. Respond to their appeals for solidarity and help. Make mischief. Spread the word. Keep the conversation going.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88814/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Cook runs the spoof shopping website followthethings.com, receives funding from Kone Foundation and is a member of the Global Coordination Team of the Fashion Revolution Movement.</span></em></p>If you find help messages from factory and delivery workers in your presents this season, how should you respond?Ian Cook, Professor of Cultural Geography, University of ExeterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/882522017-12-03T19:25:43Z2017-12-03T19:25:43ZSustainable Shopping: the eco-friendly guide to online Christmas shopping<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197053/original/file-20171130-12040-him00v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5760%2C3259&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Online shopping is quick and fun. There are ways to make it eco-friendly.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Shopping can be confusing at the best of times, and trying to find environmentally friendly options makes it even more difficult. Welcome to our <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/sustainable-shopping-38407">Sustainable Shopping</a> series, in which we ask experts to provide easy eco-friendly guides to purchases big and small.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>Online shopping has recently <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/325000-orders-a-second-as-singles-days-breaks-shopping-records/news-story/5d6b1c268da36d23cb14791b3e671395">smashed retail records</a> worldwide, while its growth has continued <a href="https://acquire.startrack.com.au/pdf/Inside%20Australian%20Online%20Shopping%202017.pdf">significantly in Australia</a>. With Christmas just around the corner, Australia Post expects this to be the busiest year <a href="http://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/australia-post-is-offering-free-delivery-for-over-40-of-australias-biggest-online-stores/news-story/61b12dd9a22e9c8a1ea46c2dc0fcac9b">it has ever seen</a>.</p>
<p>December is the largest buying month in Australia, with online shopping hitting its peak during the Christmas period. In 2016, total online spending hit a staggering <a href="https://acquire.startrack.com.au/pdf/Inside%20Australian%20Online%20Shopping%202017.pdf">A$21.7 billion</a> with a <a href="https://acquire.startrack.com.au/pdf/Inside%20Australian%20Online%20Shopping%202017.pdf">10.4% growth</a> in parcels.</p>
<p>An increase in purchases usually leads to an increased carbon footprint, but online shopping can actually be more environmentally friendly than traditional shopping – as long as you follow these simple rules.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/sustainable-shopping-how-to-rock-white-sneakers-without-eco-guilt-85989">Sustainable shopping: how to rock white sneakers without eco-guilt</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Online shopping can be better than buying in-store</h2>
<p>During the 2016 Christmas period, Australian Post handled more than <a href="https://acquire.startrack.com.au/pdf/Inside%20Australian%20Online%20Shopping%202017.pdf">34 million domestic parcels</a>. It might seem natural to assume that all this package delivery increases the environmental impact of our shopping, but research shows that completely online buying is <a href="https://ctl.mit.edu/sites/ctl.mit.edu/files/library/public/Dimitri-Weideli-Environmental-Analysis-of-US-Online-Shopping_0.pdf">better than going to a store</a>.</p>
<p>The major reason for online shopping’s lower carbon footprint is the reduced number of trips we make to stores. A delivery truck uses far less fuel per package than an equivalent number of people driving in person to pick them up. </p>
<p>However, many people will check products in-store before buying them online, which negates the benefit of online shopping. A 2013 study from the <a href="http://business.edf.org/blog/2013/12/21/is-online-shopping-better-for-the-environment/">MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics</a> found that shoppers who visit stores before buying online generate a carbon footprint almost twice the size of a purely online purchase. </p>
<p>Problems also arise <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/nov/24/black-friday-to-cause-spikes-in-air-pollution-and-plastic-waste-warn-environmentalists">when consumers are not at home</a>, as redeliveries add a significant amount of carbon emissions to online purchases. Flexible delivery options, like Australia Post’s <a href="https://auspost.com.au/receiving/manage-deliveries-in-transit/safe-drop">Safe Drop</a>, can help mitigate this (and some overseas companies actually allow adjustable delivery times). </p>
<p>Another environmental concern is the packaging itself. Most packaging boxes consist of cardboard and various types of plastics. Sadly, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/nov/18/online-shopping-holidays-packaging-waste-recycling">almost half of the boxes are not recycled</a>. And while you might feel guilty about this waste, the bigger issue lies in your returns.</p>
<p>At Zalando, one of the biggest online retail websites, where shipping and returns are free, the return rate of packages is <a href="http://www.manager-magazin.de/unternehmen/artikel/a-1036798.html">50%</a>. In the US, the chain of returned goods used <a href="http://mashable.com/2016/11/29/cyber-monday-returns-environment/#wiuPrxpycSqz">4.5 billion litres of diesel fuel and emitted 12 million</a> tonnes of carbon emissions in 2015 alone.</p>
<p>In summary, picking up items after a failed delivery or at a click-and-collect point, returning unwanted items, or other complementary shopping trips all increase the carbon footprint.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-retailers-want-you-to-click-and-collect-83094">Why retailers want you to 'click and collect'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The 4 Rs of sustainable online shopping</h2>
<p>Although the entire delivery process is complex and consists of many variables, there are some simple things to keep in mind. I call them the four Rs:</p>
<p><strong>Rethink</strong>: online purchasing is better for the environment, but only if the entire process remains digital from start to finish. So, no brick-and-mortar store visiting. Signing up for suitable <a href="https://auspost.com.au/delivery-options">delivery options</a> helps to ensure your parcel arrives on time, eliminates extra deliveries and reduces your carbon impact.</p>
<p><strong>Relax</strong>: buy well in advance, thereby avoiding same-day or next-day delivery. The gives transport companies the chance to consolidate the packages into fewer trips, increasing efficiency and reducing emissions.</p>
<p><strong>Returns</strong>: do you really need to order that T-shirt in three sizes? Every avoided return is a contribution to the environment.</p>
<p><strong>Reuse</strong>: opt for eco-friendly packaging and reuse it, especially boxes and cushioning materials. <a href="http://recyclingweek.planetark.org/documents/doc-1117-recycling-revolution-report-2013.pdf">Planet Ark</a>, an Australian environmental organisation, has lots of information on recycling if you want to understand the size of the problem.</p>
<p>Ultimately, although these steps can help, eco-friendly shopping begins with <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/sustainable-shopping-38407">what you buy, and from where</a>. </p>
<p>In most cases, transportation counts for only a small part of an item’s overall environmental impact, so it’s important to choose the right producer. Keep in mind that, although delivery is important, there is an entire supply chain that comes before it. Happy sustainable shopping!</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88252/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David M. Herold does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>’Tis the season for online shopping – which means a month of shipping. Here’s how to reduce your delivery footprint.David M. Herold, Sustainable Logistics Researcher, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/544032016-02-19T04:34:51Z2016-02-19T04:34:51ZEthical fashion shoppers are scorned by others – and the headlines don’t help<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111057/original/image-20160211-29188-1f68f5e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ethical fashion: not boring.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.purepod.com.au/shop/index.php">Pure Pod</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Journal of Consumer Psychology has been having a bit of a fashion moment, after publishing a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057740815001011">study</a> that prompted a slew of media coverage over the past few weeks. </p>
<p>The headlines lashed many shoppers’ attitudes as “<a href="http://phys.org/news/2016-01-ugly-consumer-ridiculing-ethically.html">ugly</a>” and “<a href="http://www.ecouterre.com/willfully-ignorant-consumers-see-ethical-shoppers-as-boring-unfashionable">wilfully ignorant</a>”, and detailed how most people quickly turn into <a href="http://grist.org/living/breaking-were-ignorant-and-lazy-consumers-who-judge-people-for-doing-the-right-thing">lazy and judgemental</a> <a href="http://www.thedailystar.com/cnhi_network/haters-gonna-hate-why-ethical-shoppers-face-scorn/article_e1244171-c21f-5199-8dd8-a394ed8b09d7.html">haters</a> when asked to give their verdict on “<a href="http://www.details.com/story/ethical-shoppers-seen-as-less-fashionable-and-more-boring">boring and unfashionable</a>” ethical shoppers.</p>
<p>While this all makes for good headlines, it’s not particularly constructive because these stories tend to reinforce the divide between “ethical” and “non-ethical” consumers. If we want more people to shop ethically, it’s not very helpful to cast judgement on the “ordinary” shopping public whom ethical campaigners are trying to reach.</p>
<p>What did the research actually say, and how can we move past the sensational headlines towards encouraging everyone to shop more ethically?</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111061/original/image-20160211-29188-1yfhcwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">It doesn’t have to be dull to dress sustainably.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kowtow</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057740815001011">study</a>, led by Ohio State University consumer psychologist Daniel Zane, builds on <a href="http://journals.ama.org/doi/abs/10.1509/jmkr.2005.42.3.266">earlier research</a> that found most shoppers prefer to be wilfully ignorant about purchases. </p>
<p>People will use information about labour practices or environmental impact if it is provided, but if it’s not they won’t actively seek out this information before buying something. </p>
<p>The new research found that not only are this group of consumers wilfully ignorant about their purchases, in this case jeans and a backpack, but they also negatively judge those who do seek out ethical products. Participants in the study described ethically-minded shoppers as “boring”, “odd” and “unfashionable”.</p>
<p>What’s more, these wilfully ignorant consumers also judge companies that act unethically less harshly after they themselves have judged the ethical shoppers, and are less inclined to act ethically with respect to future purchases.</p>
<p>This behaviour is attributed to <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=1s-tMyL-amcC&oi=fnd&pg=PA460&ots=9VP9tLoBmA&sig=wk_KQOvEat1ftN6rWf1ECJ-Mefo#v=onepage&q&f=false">social comparison theory</a>. In essence, the consumer is acting in self-defence so as not to view themselves as inferior to ethical consumers. It’s not that they don’t care about ethical issues, but when they are reminded that they have not acted in accordance with these values while others did, they feel bad about themselves and effectively lash out at those who made them feel that way.</p>
<p>However, the researchers conclude on a positive note: if information is made readily available to shoppers, they will be more likely to make an ethical purchase. This has the flow-on effect that they will be less inclined to lash out at ethical consumers and more likely to to change their overall consumption habits.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111075/original/image-20160211-29198-pv2btm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ethical and chic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">KITX</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Beyond the headlines</h2>
<p>Let’s have another look at the media coverage cited above. To their credit, most of the articles included plenty of detail about the study. But given that the average reader spends <a href="http://time.com/12933/what-you-think-you-know-about-the-web-is-wrong/">less than 15 seconds reading an online article</a> (and that’s if they even <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/14/5411934/youre-not-going-to-read-this">bother to read it before sharing it online</a>), these headlines could be doing more harm than good.</p>
<p>The danger is that readers will interpret these headlines as additional negative representations of their unethical consumer behaviour, leading to yet more of the same “lashing out” documented in the study itself. The headlines also perpetuate the outdated assumption that ethical or sustainable fashion is unfashionable or boring.</p>
<p>There is still much to be understood about ethical consumption, particularly in relation to fashion. It’s fairly well documented that guilt- and fear-based messages aren’t effective in getting people to change their behaviour. And despite what the new research suggests in regard to consumers’ desire for ethical information, it’s also the case that extra information does not always lead to action.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111064/original/image-20160211-29198-1d64fj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Clothes are about making a personal statement.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kowtow</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What needs to be understood better are the other factors impacting purchase decisions, including availability, price, identity, time, lifestyle, and brand loyalty. When considering fashion in particular, a number of specific considerations come into play.</p>
<p>Guilt does not sell fashion – desire does. Education and awareness of fashion’s ethical issues need to be paired with an acknowledgement that clothing purchases are connected to pleasure, cost, and individual self-expression. This approach is likely to be more successful than messages based on guilt or denigration.</p>
<p>The good news is there is more and more sustainable fashion in the marketplace, which helps to overcome the stigma that ethically sourced clothes are ugly or too expensive. The many small start-up labels are increasingly being joined by <a href="http://www.kering.com/en/sustainability">larger fashion houses</a> and <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/retail/david-jones-sets-ambitious-target-for-every-product-to-be-ethically-sourced-20150428-1mvi3v.html">department stores</a> in responding to the demand.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=755&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=949&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=949&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/111065/original/image-20160211-29180-g3b4cv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=949&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shoppers want to feel good about what they buy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Maiyet/Instagram</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Consumers aren’t shopping in a vacuum. They can only buy what is available from the fashion industry, distributed by retailers, and made affordable by appropriate trade agreements. And ultimately, the clothes have to meet shoppers’ desire for a particular self-image or the pleasure of owning a particular garment.</p>
<p>Until all of this is better understood, it’s probably counter-productive to keep pointing the finger at “ignorant consumers” or perpetuating the myth of ethical fashion as “boring” and “unfashionable” – even if it does make for an entertaining headline.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/54403/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lisa Heinze is affiliated with sustainable fashion advocacy groups Clean Cut and Fashion Revolution through voluntary roles. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natalya Lusty does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A study has revealed shoppers’ harsh attitudes to those who prefer to buy ethical fashion. But the headlines will only entrench the divide.Lisa Heinze, PhD candidate Sustainability, Fashion & Everyday Life, University of SydneyNatalya Lusty, Associate Professor of Gender and Cultural Studies, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/378922015-02-24T00:47:49Z2015-02-24T00:47:49ZAngst over berries makes case for ‘good, clean, fair’ food<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/72711/original/image-20150223-21904-u8jdm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Do you care where the food you buy comes from?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">amy/Flickr</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The public <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw-hepatitis-a-patient-very-cranky-with-frozen-berries-debacle-20150219-13jh09.html">reaction</a> to the Hepatitis A scare linked to contaminated <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-17/fourth-frozen-berry-product-recalled-in-hepatitis-a-scare/6126272">frozen berries imported from China</a> continues. </p>
<p>Consumer confidence in imported food is likely to have suffered a hit, and consumers are questioning the safety of imported food. Public health activists are calling for clear country of origin food labelling. Retailers are promising consumers stricter testing procedures for imported food products. Farmers are demanding a level playing field so they can compete against imports. Government authorities are defending existing food import protocols. And politicians are calling for inquiries. All of these perspectives have some element of truth, but we need to go beyond the immediate reactionary concerns and seek to understand the underlying reasons that have led to this situation in the first place.</p>
<p>Australia is a net food exporter; depending on seasonal conditions we export around <a href="http://www.agriculture.gov.au/about/annualreport/annual-report-2010-11/snapshot">60% of what we produce</a>. In fact, Australia is one of just a handful of countries that are net food exporters. We are a relatively small population occupying a relatively large land. The ratio of arable land per person in Australia (2.07 ha per person) is the <a href="http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.ARBL.HA.PC">highest in the world</a>, which means we really are the lucky country when it comes to food production and food security. </p>
<p>The fact we are a net food exporter does not mean we don’t import more than we export in certain categories. So while we are one of the world’s biggest exporters in beef, wheat, sugar, and wine; we also import processed and frozen foods.</p>
<p>So why does Australia import food? The short answer is price, though other factors include variety and seasonality. </p>
<h2>Cost crunch</h2>
<p>The average Australian household spends $204/week on food and non-alcoholic beverages, or <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/6530.0Main%20Features22009-10?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=6530.0&issue=2009-10&num=&view">17% of total household expenditure</a>, and food prices have increased by 34% over the past decade, so there is a strong argument for keeping downward pressure on food prices. The business model of the big retailers is to drive prices down, but this often means <a href="http://accc.gov.au/media-release/court-finds-coles-engaged-in-unconscionable-conduct-and-orders-coles-pay-10-million-penalties">paying less to farmers</a>. While it is hard to argue against low food prices, there are <a href="http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2FPHN%2FPHN15_02%2FS136898001100142Xa.pdf&code=1d245e267b872732c3e652438a6bb5dd">concerns</a> that health and environmental costs associated with unhealthy and unsustainable practices are not adequately captured in the focus on low food prices.</p>
<p>The unfortunate reality is that the big retailers can often source food cheaper from imports than from domestic farmers. The big retailers defend this practice by pointing out consumers benefit from cheaper food. While it is true that price is a major determinant of food purchase behaviour, it is not the only one. <a href="http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130123162956/http:/www.defra.gov.uk/statistics/files/defra-stats-foodfarm-food-pocketbook-2012-130104.pdf">Other drivers</a> include taste, convenience, and ethical considerations. One of these ethical reasons is a desire to support “local” farmers, however local is defined. So on the one hand many consumers want or need cheap food, on the other, for some at least, there is a desire to support local farmers and rural communities with their food purchases. This ethical dilemma is brought into sharp focus by the Hepatitis A contaminated berry crisis.</p>
<h2>Ethical eating and ‘food literacy’</h2>
<p>How many of those consumers calling for more local food would be willing to pay more for that food? Consumers often prefer local food and may be <a href="http://ac.els-cdn.com/S0921800913000153/1-s2.0-S0921800913000153-main.pdf?_tid=3924440c-bb24-11e4-a960-00000aab0f27&acdnat=1424672678_2c39c63e7d5f77f88cf7e40257f8a30f">prepared to pay more</a> for local food, but often availability is limited and food labelling laws make it difficult for consumers to make ethical food purchases. And while the notion of consumers being willing to pay more for ethically produced food is not without precedent, free range eggs being a prime example, producers themselves are often resistant to consumer opportunities. </p>
<p>The current retail business model (high volume, low margin) is not focused on the ethical consumer. But the big retailers have immense market intelligence, and the growth in products in the organic aisle suggests they are responding to growing demand.</p>
<p>For consumers worried about where their food comes from, part of the long-term solution lies in more food consumers becoming food literate and empowered to exercise their influence as consumers. Ultimately it is you, the consumer, that drives modern food supply chains.</p>
<p><a href="http://search.informit.com.au/fullText;dn=609839497923648;res=IELHSS">Food literacy</a> has three dimensions:</p>
<p>1) knowledge about the impact of our food choices on our health </p>
<p>2) knowledge about the impact of our food choices on our ecological footprint (as an aside, for most people food represents the largest single contributor to their <a href="http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/%7E/media/Publications/1267.pdf">environmental impact</a>, and </p>
<p>3) knowledge about the impacts of our food choices on the businesses and communities that grow and provide our food. </p>
<p>The founder of the <a href="http://www.slowfood.com/">slow food movement</a>, Carlo Petrini, summed this up as “good, clean and fair”. Food systems should be good for our health, clean for the environment and fair for farmers. </p>
<p>Contaminated berries are obviously not good for our health (although in principle snap frozen food retains nutritional quality). Imported berries most likely have a greater environmental footprint than locally produced ones (although I would reserve judgement until a comprehensive <a href="http://ac.els-cdn.com.ezproxy.uws.edu.au/S0959652612001849/1-s2.0-S0959652612001849-main.pdf?_tid=3174a8f0-b980-11e4-961a-00000aab0f6c&acdnat=1424492276_079558aed0d49107716f61decd701cae">Life Cycle Assessment</a> study was undertaken), and the current market and policy settings are clearly unfair to Australian producers, although presumably Chinese producers benefit. </p>
<p>Becoming food literate entails acquiring knowledge across these issues, forming an ethical stance, and making deliberate food choices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/37892/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bill Bellotti does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In the drive to cut costs on food, Australians often overlook the real impact of food choices.Bill Bellotti, Vincent Fairfax Chair in Sustainable Agriculture & Rural Development, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/326752014-10-08T03:49:30Z2014-10-08T03:49:30ZDo you know how your clothes were made?<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61119/original/dwdhgh6m-1412738746.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lamia Begum cries holding on to a barbwire fence in front of Rana Plaza building, two months after the building collapse at Savar, Bangladesh in June 2013.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/ Abit Abdullah</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One moment: one recent Saturday afternoon, I was sitting on the top deck of a red London bus, watching a sea of shoppers flood over Oxford Circus. The cream of the British high street have their flagship stores there, Primark and Topshop, as well as international labels that Australian shoppers can’t get enough of, H&M, Zara, Uniqlo. Down Regent Street, across Oxford Street, all I could see was a slowly moving mass of people, all carrying shopping bags.</p>
<p>Another moment: whilst on that same trip, I wore a pair of Adidas sneakers. They’re black and grey, with pink and yellow accents on the toe, between the upper and sole, and they often elicit admiring comments from other people. When I was looking for a pair of sneakers earlier this year, I deliberately didn’t consider buying Nike shoes because of my disappointment at <a href="http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/cambodia-walmart-nike-bashed-silence-over-garment-workers-killings-1431677">their failure to intercede on behalf of the Cambodian garment workers employed by their suppliers, who were killed by police this year for demonstrating for higher wages</a>. </p>
<p>Little did I then know that Adidas also have a long track record of <a href="https://www.oxfam.org.au/explore/workers-rights/adidas/talking-with-adidas/">failing to pressure suppliers into creating safe working environments and implementing fair wages for the employees of the factories that make their product</a>.</p>
<p>What other companies outsource their production to poorly regulated factories in Asian countries such as India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Indonesia? New Balance, GAP, Levi’s, Benetton, Walmart, Primark, and Australian labels Peter Alexander and Just Jeans, among others. </p>
<p>By “poorly regulated”, I mean garment workers being compelled to work in buildings that have not passed fire safety inspections or that have had additional floors added that make them structurally unsound. I mean garment workers working unpaid overtime, being paid a minimum wage which is below a <a href="http://www.labourbehindthelabel.org/campaigns/item/1172-what-is-a-living-wage">living wage</a>, being exposed to dangerous fibres and chemicals without any workplace safety measures in place, and facing the loss of their job or imprisonment if they join a union or advocate for better conditions and pay.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/61120/original/6yyc8tnh-1412738959.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hundreds of people line up in front of Australia’s first Zara store which opened in Sydney in 2011.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/ Tracey Nearmy</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We live in a culture that tells us that who we are is inextricably bound with what we consume. Our taste in music, where we dine, even what we <em>don’t</em> eat, and our personal style are all indicative of our identity, and communicate to others the kind of person we feel ourselves to be. </p>
<p>Implicit in this is value: looking good when spending less means you are a smart shopper. Wearing what is new (remember <a href="http://www.news.com.au/finance/zara-fever-never-seen-anything-like-it/story-e6frfm1i-1226043948923">the lengthy queues outside Zara’s Pitt St store in Sydney</a> when it opened?) or what is cool marks you out as someone who has access to the best, to the zeitgeist. So I wonder what it means to wear clothes by a multinational company whose net worth was US$22.76 billion as of May this year whose suppliers pay their employees below a living wage? For me and my “cool” Adidas sneakers, it meant being clueless about the human hands that made the shoes on my feet.</p>
<p>If we are going to participate in a culture of consumption, the least we can do is be aware about where our clothes were made, and under what conditions. Even better than that would be action: not a boycott of the companies that contract their production to suppliers, but agitation for fair pay and proper conditions for the garment workers who work for them. </p>
<p>Boycotting could lead to the closure of factories and the removal of essential industry from countries for whom export is economically fundamental (the garment industry in Bangladesh, for example, employs four million people and provides nearly 80% of the country’s exports). </p>
<p>But what if we, the customers of these companies, wrote to them, demanding accountability and transparency in their production processes? We could start in Australia by putting pressure on Best and Less and the ironically named Just Group (which owns labels such as Portmans, Peter Alexander, Dotti, Jay Jays, Jacqui E, Just Jeans and Smiggle) who <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-24/australian-clothing-retailers-yet-to-sign-factory-safety-accord/5408028">have not yet signed the legally enforceable Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh</a>. (You can see the list of the official signatories <a href="http://bangladeshaccord.org/signatories/">here</a>)</p>
<p>What if we threw our support behind transformative measures such as the implementation of the <a href="http://www.cleanclothes.org/livingwage/calculating-a-living-wage">Asian Floor Wage</a> that would ensure fair pay for garment workers across Asia, reducing the danger of companies moving production to somewhere cheaper within the region if wages are raised?</p>
<p>What if when we looked at shops, we looked past the promise of “better”, and “transformed”, and “new” and thought of Leap, a Cambodian garment worker <a href="http://www.womeninclothes.com/">who said</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I used to think that if I could have one quality and beautiful bra like I make, I would be really happy and I would be very beautiful. But it’s impossible. These bras are for export, and the price of one of the bras I make is almost equal to my salary. While working, I hold the bra up in front of my face, then I ask myself who is the woman who will wear the bra I am sewing. I also wonder how the women in these countries are so rich and lucky to wear these expensive bras while the person who makes that bra just wears a very cheap one bought from the pile of clothes on the ground under the umbrella.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>What if instead of feeling entitled to cheap clothes, we, with our considerable buying power, championed the rights of workers like Reba Sikder, who worked at the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh? </p>
<p>Reba, one of the survivors of that disaster which killed over 1,100 people and injured 2,500 more, who, alongside her colleagues, was ordered into the factory because an international buyer was putting pressure on management to receive their shipment even though significant cracks had appeared in the building on the previous day. </p>
<p>Reba, who, when she was trapped in the collapsed factory, “saw another thirty workers trapped, many of them dead, injured, and everyone is screaming … and I saw one of my coworkers drinking her own blood from her injured area, because she was so thirsty and there is nothing she can get”, and who has still not received any compensation for her injury.</p>
<p>If we know about this suffering, if we know about this terrible inequality, and we could say something, and we don’t, what does that say about us?
<br></p>
<p><em>Want to find out more? Here are some useful places to start:
<a href="http://www.labourbehindthelabel.org/">Labour Behind the Label</a>;
<a href="https://www.oxfam.org.au/explore/workers-rights/">Oxfam on worker’s rights</a>;
<a href="http://wiego.org/informal-economy/occupational-groups/garment-workers">Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) on garment workers</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/32675/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
One moment: one recent Saturday afternoon, I was sitting on the top deck of a red London bus, watching a sea of shoppers flood over Oxford Circus. The cream of the British high street have their flagship…Rosie Findlay, Teaching Fellow, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/237522014-02-28T13:12:18Z2014-02-28T13:12:18ZBrand history shows marketing is the second oldest profession<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42680/original/y8tcfrmq-1393518423.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C3%2C1020%2C676&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Reputational risk</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/52935953@N03/5010744932/in/photolist-8CMnU1-8Ex1pB-9PWYMR-9FzJKc-bVFua6-8wecsF-bsWy7F-dpcNMw-bsWyF2-9ZPgaR-7Q3yUx-dVBMkg-bexKW2-aDRawT-9DtHwV-b4rCDr-9eApet-7NfxcR-9gxVrG-9wTjer-abUw3b-dAQS2Y-e36BNA-9hrGLn-c3gASq-8zYxYZ-b1fpzn-gtLSEw-efVgap-eozGYX-i9SQUn-i7k3Zo-jJnHEG-euPNvS-7FsjGx-8jeuKU">Ernesto Pletsch</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Oxfam has announced the latest set of results from its <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/26/us-food-oxfam-idUSBREA1P00F20140226">Behind the Brands project</a> to influence ten leading food and beverage companies to reform their supply chains. The charity’s efforts are only the most recent in a long and lively history of campaigns to reform business practices across a number of industries.</p>
<p>Rather than encouraging boycotts, Behind the Brands urges companies such as Coca Cola, Danone and Kelloggs to improve by regularly monitoring their performance and providing that information to consumers. <a href="http://www.behindthebrands.org/en-us/campaign-news/turning-the-way-food-companies-do-business-upside-down">The latest results</a> reveal that, during the past year, there has been an improvement in the condition of women in supply chains and in the attention paid by companies to land rights. Oxfam has responded positively to these developments, but has emphasised that the campaign will continue.</p>
<p>There are precedents for campaigns tackling Oxfam’s themes of transparency at the corporate level and improvements for workers from as early as the medieval period. But how was this encouraged and why?</p>
<p>Transparency in business operations was a key concern even for medieval consumers. They wanted to be assured that traders were consistently honest in their business dealings, would treat customers fairly and would sell goods of the correct quality and quantity. Manuals instructed businesspeople to “cherish the honour and the good welfare of your city” and “always act according as is right”. Honesty and integrity in business were principles that also guided the Quaker firms of the eighteenth century onwards, including the chocolate manufacturers Cadbury’s and Rowntree’s.</p>
<h2>Paved with gold</h2>
<p>Transparency can be communicated in a variety of ways. In the medieval period engagement with the local community was crucial. Successful merchants like Richard Whittington made donations to infrastructure projects which reinforced their ties to their local community. Craft organisations in York performed plays of biblical tales related to their professions – the fishmongers performed Noah’s Ark. Long-term investment in the area and codes of behaviour were both emphasised.</p>
<p>Failure to adhere to these standards had serious consequences for firms. Informally, manuals warned medieval merchants of the risk of losing “their trade contacts” if they behaved deceitfully. Formal regulations also governed how firms could operate from around the beginning of the 13th century – and breaking those regulations could result in a large fine, imprisonment or physical punishment. Opportunities for reform and to learn from mistakes were provided. However those who persistently broke the rules were banned from trading for at least a year. There was therefore an incentive for businesses to comply.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42681/original/mzwbt638-1393518844.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shiny happy people.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/betsyweber/9233322258/in/photolist-f4Vc2m-8yCcfD-9iQdvd-9iM66B-9iM5ZV-95B12A-95xXqZ-dRPdfJ-95xXCp-95xXHa-9uYNQj/">Betsy Weber</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Oxfam’s desire to improve working conditions also has earlier parallels. Some contemporary companies, such as Nike, now provides consumers with data on the different factories in its supply chain <a href="http://nikeinc.com/pages/responsibility">on its website</a>. But factory inspections have been used in many instances to promote transparency in the treatment of the workforce. Cadbury’s promoted its <a href="http://www.cadbury.co.uk/the-story">factory in Bournville, Birmingham</a> as “the factory in a garden”. Publicity material from the 19th and early 20th centuries, produced for visitors, promotes the amenities for workers, including recreational facilities and housing. </p>
<p>William Hesketh Lever, whose company eventually became part of Unilever, also integrated the treatment of workers at his <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/jun/09/walk-guides-port-sunlight-merseyside">factory and village complex Port Sunlight</a> into the broader promotion of Sunlight Soap. The firms benefited from the positive publicity and the workers benefited from improved conditions relative to other factories at the time. The irony of now being one of the targets of the Oxfam campaign won’t be lost on Unilever. </p>
<h2>A sour taste</h2>
<p>The Behind the Brands campaign has developed as consumers are increasingly separated, by both the supply chain and by geographical distance, from those who supply their goods, and there are echoes of that in the arrival of the railways in Britain and the US. </p>
<p>Milk and meat could, for the first time, be prepared and packaged in one location and then transported some distance to another location for sale. In his novel, <a href="http://www.shmoop.com/the-jungle/">The Jungle</a>, Upton Sinclair recounted some of the dangerous practices, including the sale of meat from diseased animals, that occurred in the Chicago meat plants in the early 20th century. He also highlighted the poor working conditions of the employees. </p>
<p>In the UK, the medical profession highlighted the increasing amounts of dangerous chemicals that were being added to milk to preserve it during the train journey from the Home Counties to London.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/42683/original/zgs93fmf-1393519109.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fresh from the farm?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/24920925@N05/3682425202/in/photolist-6BpoHG-6BSQc7-6Tskyk-6TwmwL-72BxUi-76wphH-77aGHz-7b9yvq-7g6BUd-7x7hWA-7x7i5W-9qBSxo-cjr6zW-cJKFGq-cJKG1j-cJKGrS-cJKGMQ-9bYNwa-9c2TjE-9bYP1Z-8C5bYU-7yuMD6-e8r4na-fmPDQN-7QZLcN-aFtwFv-ce6abf-7Y5t4e-9LufhR-ccrtZC-9oLrPo-gsd5Do-gse8Z8-gsdv7n-9qySiv-9qyRUD-9qBTio-caawbo-k6wLQx-9Lx42N-9uJJ5x-f5EYFx-7QWt7n-9Lx5Eb-cpBanS-867u8J-9LugAe-c6bTAy-aWDzEZ-8naRhp-7zfF3x">Adam Edmond</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Media attention was drawn to these issues, and consumers were educated through cartoons and rhymes about how to detect such defaults in their foodstuffs. Although no immediate changes were made in either industry, the presence of problems was highlighted. It is a route that Oxfam acknowledges, choosing to focus on consumer education in its campaign, while accepting that the process of change may be gradual.</p>
<p>And any campaign in the corporate world, especially one as focused as Oxfam’s, brings an element of reputational risk, making a firm’s desire for a positive brand image a hugely important element in any attempts to force reform. Numerous references exist in medieval trade regulations to the “damage” and “scandal” that could occur to a business that broke regulations or failed to meet consumer expectation.</p>
<p>Working with businesses can also encourage action on the part of other stakeholders. Local governments in medieval towns recognised that the business practices of firms in their city reflected on the economy of the city as a whole. In 1344 in London, for example, local government took direct action to ‘maintain the reputation of the skinners’ trade and in 1379 in Leicester the local government appointed inspectors in response to poor business practises amongst the weavers. </p>
<p>One crucial difference between these historical examples and the situation today, of course, is that highly local changes are no longer enough. Throughout history, consumers have had certain expectations of how businesses should behave both towards customers and towards employees, but the shift to a “global market” has changed the ways that consumers and firms can interact. Oxfam will hope it can continue to harness those medieval instincts on a far grander scale.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/23752/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catherine Casson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Oxfam has announced the latest set of results from its Behind the Brands project to influence ten leading food and beverage companies to reform their supply chains. The charity’s efforts are only the most…Catherine Casson, Teaching Fellow in Business and Society, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/193902013-12-19T19:13:25Z2013-12-19T19:13:25ZDoes becoming a mother make women ‘greener’?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38083/original/zpz8bmht-1387327849.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New mothers make a lot of decisions to improve their babies' welfare.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Megan Myers</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Stop press! Actress Julia Roberts has been <a href="http://www.celebritycarsblog.com/2011/01/spotted-julia-roberts-in-a-prius/">spotted</a> in a Prius and is <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2006/05/onthecover200605">reportedly</a> into reusable coffee cups and solar panels.</p>
<p>According to media reports, it was the birth of her twins, rather than her Oscar-winning turn as environmentalist Erin Brockovich, that inspired her green transformation.</p>
<h2>Motherhood and the environment</h2>
<p>This tidbit of celebrity gossip illustrates the popular idea that mothers are generally “greener” than the broader population.</p>
<p>Our recent research explored this idea. It aimed to identify where having children appears to make a difference in women’s reported environmentally relevant household behaviour. It also explored what these behaviours <em>mean</em> to new mothers. </p>
<p>It adds to the small but growing body of evidence that <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/0022-4537.00177/abstract">gender</a> and parenthood can affect environmental <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1540-6237.00088/abstract">values</a>, attitudes, <a href="http://eab.sagepub.com/content/28/3/302.short">concerns</a> and behaviours.</p>
<p>Researchers have also described the “<a href="http://www.econbiz.de/Record/concern-about-toxic-wastes-three-demographic-predictors-hamilton-lawrence/10001033512">motherhood effect</a>”, where the social role of women as nurturers and carers of children leads them to greater concern about environmental problems. </p>
<p>While women are more likely to <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/716100620#.UoFtMyiQTgp">report</a> environmental concerns and behaviours, this doesn’t extend to higher levels of activism. “Eco-mums” appear to be more Julia Roberts than Erin Brockovich.</p>
<p>In contrast, recent Australian Bureau of Statistics <a href="http://abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4670.0main+features100062012">figures</a> show that when a couple adds children to the household group, its energy and petrol use increases. This paints a picture of conflicting emotions as new mothers reconcile the impacts of their increased consumption and their heightened environmental concern. </p>
<p>Add to this the <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J015v25n01_04">guilt</a> felt over nappy choices and the contribution to the planet’s growing <a href="https://theconversation.com/squaring-up-to-difficult-truths-population-and-the-environment-5909">population</a>. It’s little wonder the term “eco-mom” has been called an <a href="http://www.literarymama.com/columns/greatgreenroom/archives/2008/05/great-green-room.html">oxymoron</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38085/original/chhx35hn-1387328014.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">simplyla/Flickr</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Exploring motherhood and sustainable living</h2>
<p>One challenge for environmental behaviour change is that many of our resource using behaviours are <a href="https://theconversation.com/hard-habit-to-break-getting-out-of-our-energy-wasting-ways-11538">habitual</a>. They’re regular, automatic and cued by the surroundings they’re performed in. This makes them resistant to change.</p>
<p>Becoming a mother is all about <a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10603-011-9181-6">change</a>: changing priorities, attitudes, social groups, habits and lifestyles. One emerging <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494407000898">theory</a> suggests events that disrupt habits, like having a baby, create <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-introduction-of-a-carbon-tax-a-teachable-moment-to-change-habits-7737">teachable moments</a>: opportunities to learn better habits.</p>
<p>Our research used a mixed-methods approach. We began with an analysis of existing data from two surveys, provided by the <a href="http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/community/whocares2012.htm">NSW Office of Environment and Heritage</a> and <a href="http://greenlightreport.sustainability.vic.gov.au/">Sustainability Victoria</a>. We compared women with and without children. </p>
<p>The results of our analysis were mixed, but suggest women with children are more likely to perform some of the pro-environmental behaviours that could be linked with their child’s wellbeing or are easy to do. </p>
<p>For example, women with children were more likely to say they’ve disposed of chemicals through special collections. Those with young children were most likely to use cold water for clothes washing.</p>
<h2>Mothers’ perspectives</h2>
<p>Based on the quantitative findings, we conducted in-depth interviews with eight new mothers living in Melbourne to see how they describe and account for their own changes in behaviour since having children.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=904&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1135&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1135&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38087/original/7dzqz7s7-1387328256.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1135&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Oliver Degabriele</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As expected, nappies dominated mothers’ talk around environmental issues. However, the conversations all revealed dramatically increased energy use, and changes in cleaning behaviours and transport habits.</p>
<p>New mothers talked about these behaviours in connection with their baby’s wellbeing, rather than in connection with the environment. It appears “green” is in the eye of the beholder. </p>
<p>While academics, environmentalists and government authorities might view energy use in relation to climate change, our research suggests new mothers <em>don’t</em>. Instead, they see energy use as necessary for keeping their baby warm and comfortable. </p>
<p>Similarly, preferences for greener cleaners were motivated by concerns over exposure to “chemicals”, with benefits to the broader environment viewed as a bonus. Walking was preferred over driving for short trips because it’s good exercise and more convenient.</p>
<p>Mothers were somewhat concerned about the amount of money they spend on energy, particularly where maternity leave resulted in a loss of income. They wanted to reduce their energy use, and therefore bills, though not at the expense of their child’s comfort.</p>
<p>Mothers also talked about the pressures of the multiple demands of motherhood, time and financial constraints, tiredness and negative emotions, like guilt and anxiety.</p>
<p>Overall, our research suggests the pro-environmental behaviours that are adopted by new mothers are really pro-health or money-saving behaviours from their point of view.</p>
<p>An important side note is that mothers’ talk revealed a high use of social media and the internet to seek social connection, information and advice. With mothers <a href="http://hdl.handle.net/2381/1403">increasingly empowered</a> to seek their own advice, this has implications for the spread of information <em>and</em> misinformation.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/38088/original/wr4tm68v-1387328381.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Hummel</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Is motherhood an eco-opportunity?</h2>
<p>Our research illustrates that the transition to motherhood is indeed a time of change — for better or worse — in environmental behaviour. This may be an opportunity for encouraging sustainable behaviour.</p>
<p>Behaviour change initiatives for new mothers can benefit both the environment and families by focusing on pro-environmental behaviours that are also health promoting or that ensure low-cost thermal comfort, and framing behaviours in these terms. Their designs should also account for the changing ways new mothers gain information and advice.</p>
<p>The underlying message for promoting sustainability is the importance of understanding your audience. By tailoring the target actions and messages to <em>their</em> needs, interests and meanings — not necessarily your own — you’re more likely to achieve what you’re aiming for. </p>
<p>After all, to paraphrase <a href="http://www1.media.american.edu/speeches/Kennedy.htm">John F Kennedy</a>, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this planet… and we all cherish our children’s future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/19390/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tanya Ha has carried out sustainability engagement consulting work for several corporate, non-profit and government organisations. At present she has no paid roles for such organisations with an interest in this article. She is a past board member of Sustainability Victoria.
The New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage and Sustainability Victoria provided in-kind support for the research this article presents, through the provision of existing survey data.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kathryn Williams does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Stop press! Actress Julia Roberts has been spotted in a Prius and is reportedly into reusable coffee cups and solar panels. According to media reports, it was the birth of her twins, rather than her Oscar-winning…Tanya Ha, Master of Environment candidate, The University of MelbourneKathryn Williams, Associate Professor in environmental psychology and Director, Office for Environmental Programs, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/78192012-06-22T04:24:41Z2012-06-22T04:24:41ZWhy the global environmental movement is failing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/12015/original/gyt52wsr-1340251749.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Queue for iPad 2 in Sydney: green activists targeting companies and governments should realise that those 'enemies' reflect the values of the money and consumption-hungry populace.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Tracey Nearmy</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The recent news out of the RIO+20 summit is dire. No collective pre-agreement, no institutional change, no investment. The difference between RIO+20 and Kyoto was that at least Kyoto created an agreement that no one really abided by (and probably never planned to abide by). In the case of RIO+20 even that charade appears to be missing. The head of Greenpeace, Kumi Naidoo, has gone so far as to declare “war” on the finance sector. As he <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/rio-20-greenpeace-war-finance-sector?newsfeed=true">told The Guardian</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>we have been investing a lot of effort over the past couple of years to understand the industry and where the leverage points are and I think we are close to this point and finance institutions should be put on notice that not only Greenpeace but others are going to be putting them under much greater scrutiny.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The global environmental movement has been in existence in a truly organized form for possibly 40 to 50 years and during that period it has created a number of noticeable wins, both locally (in terms of environmental standards in many developing nations) and globally (such as in the ban on various waterborne and airborne pollutants).</p>
<p>However, the situation facing the global environmental movement today is different. There is no singular boogeyman to point to (except perhaps fossil fuels but banning those would be the equivalent of banning oxygen) and the problems being faced by the global society today are sufficiently large and distributed that no political or commercial institution can take them on alone. In the absence of obvious specific targets, the usual axis of evil - financial institutions and corporations most noticeably, but politicians as well - are invariably put on notice by activists that they will be targets for action and behavioural change. As Naidoo noted, “the real environmental criminals were the companies largely invisible to ordinary people, such as commodity traders”. In the new environmental war enemies are everywhere; wielding power and influence invisibly.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12004/original/gmt2bfg7-1340246791.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Greenpeace’s International Executive Director, Kumi Naidoo. The “real environmental criminals” are commodity traders and other financial institutions, he says.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Greenpeace/Shayne Robinson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But the real issue that the environmental movement’s leaders have failed to grasp is that the reason there is such a lack of corporate and governmental action is that the consumers and general population do not believe and act like activists. While environmental activists ramp up the rhetoric to a war footing, ordinary individuals get on with their lives. Unfortunately, it is this ordinary individual to whom the “evil” corporate and “neutered” political representatives are beholden. The environmental movement has, in a way, declared war on everyone and its representatives.</p>
<p>For example, it is argued that pension funds are a key target of environmental activists because “it was simply unacceptable that pension funds invested money in activities that the owners of the money would not find acceptable”. But my colleagues and I recently finished a series of experimental studies on pension fund allocation by individuals in the US and Australia (with over 1,500 investors). What we discovered was rather disheartening. When given the chance, individual (ordinary mom and pop) investors actually under-allocated their funds to social responsible investment alternatives.</p>
<p>In other words, when faced with investment alternatives with identical risk-and-return characteristics, the non-social alternative was preferred to the social alternative (mainly because people did not believe that the investment returns could be sustained). Overall, the social alternative received 20% less investment than its non-social counterpart.</p>
<p>In addition, in our book, <a href="http://www.mythoftheethicalconsumer.com/home">The Myth of the Ethical Consumer</a>, we showed that individuals are highly unlikely to respond to calls to consume in a more socially responsible manner if there is (a) a price to doing so, and (b) they believe that to do so compromise product/service performance. While niches of socially-responsible consumers exist, they always have been, and will remain, niches.</p>
<p>Finally, in a recently released report on the social, economic and political values of Australians, (<a href="http://www.modern-cynic.org/social-economic-and-political-values-reports-2/">What Matters to Australians: Our Social, Political and Economic Values</a>
we found that concerns about environmental issues have declined dramatically since 2007. Today, concerns about the environment are at best a middling issue for people and pale in comparison to concerns about public safety, equality of opportunities, and basic public services. This is true in all the countries we studied (e.g., Germany, the US, and the UK so far).</p>
<p>So while it is convenient to declare war on “evil” corporate criminals and weak-willed and morally compromised politicians, the reality is that these individuals are actually more representative of the society than are activists. Indeed, by engaging in extreme activities it is also possible that activist organizations alienate just the constituency that they need to engage.</p>
<p>Indeed, given our findings, we would argue that a better strategy would not be war but a winning of the hearts and minds of the average citizen by showing them the materiality of the environmental issues to their daily lives. Dire warnings of global catastrophe generally do not get through. Publicising how specific events as will change the daily lives of people is more critical.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/12000/original/dbwwpc9b-1340246451.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dire warnings of global catastrophe generally do not get through.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Kellee Nolan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In this sense, it is perhaps better that activists work to convert people to their cause in the same way that Apple has made the iPhone or iPad a necessity rather just another technological gizmo (by making it seem essential to our daily lives). The alternative is the rhetoric and methods of warfare.</p>
<p>Most activists view themselves as political warriors. Hence they are likely to echo <a href="http://www.clausewitz.com/">von Clausewitz</a> in a belief that war is “a continuation of political intercourse carried on with other means”. However, it is best to remember another of his statements, which may be more relevant:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Kind-hearted people might of course
think there was some ingenious way to disarm or defeat the enemy without too much bloodshed, and might imagine this is the true goal of the art of war. Pleasant as it sounds, it is a fallacy that must be exposed: war is such a dangerous business that the mistakes which come from kindness are the very worst.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Comments welcome below.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/7819/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Timothy Devinney receives funding from The Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>The recent news out of the RIO+20 summit is dire. No collective pre-agreement, no institutional change, no investment. The difference between RIO+20 and Kyoto was that at least Kyoto created an agreement…Timothy Devinney, Professor of Strategy, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/39362011-10-27T03:15:56Z2011-10-27T03:15:56ZIn Buy Nothing New Month, is there such a thing as ethical consumption?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4814/original/shopping_antwerpenR.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">It's hard to resist…</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">antwerpenR</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Melbourne’s myriad laneways are at one turn dark and lifeless cul-de-sacs, and at another, splendid window-front galleries. Exhibits of colourful ceramics, velvet tiers of artisan jewellery and delicate silk scarves give way to a showcase of imported shoes and elegant handbags that are a snap at $1,500.</p>
<p>But what enchants can also repel: down in the underpass a makeshift bed is not an art installation. </p>
<p>Such was my day of leisure. Having begun the day in one part on the CBD I end it in another that takes me to my favourite independent clothing store. </p>
<p>The sales assistant – let’s call her Candice – and I always have a good old natter about everything from the change of seasons to world affairs.</p>
<p>On this particular day I managed both, but these exchanges – the conversation and the purchase – were uniquely contextualised by the ethics of consumption. </p>
<p>As I picked through racks of clothes, passing on some and earmarking others, Candice explained that October was <a href="http://www.buynothingnew.com.au/">Buy Nothing New Month</a>. She and her friends had taken the pledge and, to date, had resisted temptation. </p>
<p>Happily, they could still go out for dinner and drinks. Buying food and personal hygiene products is also allowed during BNNM. As Candice further explained, you can pretty much buy anything you please – books, CDs, and clothes – as long as they are second-hand. </p>
<p>As Candice enthusiastically espoused the ethical aims and ambitions of BNNM, I stood before her, a customer fairly itching to buy. The uncomfortable silence that risked settling between us was thwarted by my cash purchase of a floral blouse: cha-ching, cha-ching. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4815/original/shopping_yooperann.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">For many of us, life revolves around shopping. Take a break.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">yooperann</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>All of this got me thinking about the ethics of consumption and the underpinning logic of the Buy Nothing New campaign. The irony was not lost on me: if I had not gone into a shop to buy something — and a new something at that — I would have remained oblivious to the campaign. I resolved to learn more.</p>
<p>An initial Google search yielded a number of fashion blogs, the authors of which bemoaned their shopping abstinence while lauding themselves on their thrift. </p>
<p>One blogger admitted to embarking on a shopping frenzy in the last days of September. Another had committed to the pledge but added an exemption clause of her own that permitted her to buy beauty products and make-up. Others were happily compiling reward lists of what they would buy at the end of the month. </p>
<p>One could assume that the undertaking of these bloggers was a shopping galaxy away from that of Candice and her friends. But the concept of ethical consumption is always apprehended subjectively. </p>
<p>A similar observation can be made about <a href="http://www.earthhour.org/Homepage.aspx">Earth Hour</a>. A good friend of mine who dutifully turns her lights off for an hour each year in the interests of saving the planet recently announced she is having an air-conditioner installed this summer. </p>
<p>Although Earth Hour may be an effective consciousness-raising exercise, for people like my friend it means they can ignore their carbon consumption for the remaining 8,759 hours of the year. If I asked my friend if she considered herself to be an ethical person who continues to do her bit for the environment she would unequivocally say yes.</p>
<p>So who decides what is ethical consumption? Indeed, who decides what is ethical? The very concept “<a href="http://theconversation.com/we-are-what-we-eat-the-demise-of-the-ethical-grocery-shopper-3698">ethical consumer</a>” is fraught with complexity. One person’s ethical and moral compass can point in an entirely different direction to another’s.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4816/original/shopping_unlisted_sightings.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">What happens to your shiny new stuff when you get sick of it?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Unlisted Sightings</span></span>
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<p>The ethical consumer might be motivated by any number of different environmental, social or political concerns. Understandings of consumption – ethical or otherwise – proceed from a position of morality. </p>
<p>This moral landscape is inevitably the domain of the privileged. The call to consume less ignores the plight of the 2 billion and more who, through poverty and circumstance, hardly need to be told to curtail their consumption. </p>
<p>Logging on to the official BNNM website I was encouraged to sign up and take the pledge. Although I did so, I confess it was only in the spirit of research. </p>
<p>I learned that BNNM is neither about deprivation nor is it about never buying anything new again. Rather, it is challenging us to think about over-consumption and to think about the connection between declining resources and growing landfill. </p>
<p>In Australia, 20 million tonnes of waste goes into landfill. Australians spend more than $10 billion a year on goods they never use including DVDs, CDs, and clothing. Such mindless consumption should shock us all out of complacency.</p>
<p>It occurred to me that the three-minute short film on the website – which depicts the mountains of waste dumped in the backyards of developing countries – should be mandatory viewing in shopping malls.</p>
<figure><div style="text-align:center;">
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<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/12774986" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Around the World in 80 Dumps, by Amy Hanson.</span></figcaption>
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</div></figure>
<p>The website also has a congratulatory note about Alice Cooper taking his BNNM seriously for having purchased a <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/homestyle/a-trove-of-trashed-treasures-20111010-1lh8r.html">jacket from the Salvos</a> earlier in the month. This of course raises the moral question of whether that jacket might have been best left for the genuinely needy consumer. </p>
<p>But if this highlights the moral ambiguities of ethical consumption, it is the BNNM <a href="http://www.buynothingnew.com.au/competition/">competition</a> that truly confounds. Participants of BNNM can go into the draw to win $5,000. And the point? To go shopping of course. </p>
<p>The BNNM competition surely signals the campaign’s complicity with that which it seeks to reject. By implication, the project of anti-consumption becomes in and of itself, a commodity. </p>
<p>As BNNM draws to a close the world’s population has reached 7 billion. Does this mean we are to consume more or less? And so the ambiguities and complexities of ethical consumption remain just that.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/3936/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carol Hart does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Melbourne’s myriad laneways are at one turn dark and lifeless cul-de-sacs, and at another, splendid window-front galleries. Exhibits of colourful ceramics, velvet tiers of artisan jewellery and delicate…Carol Hart, Research Fellow, Institute for Social Participation, La Trobe UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/36982011-10-10T03:47:46Z2011-10-10T03:47:46ZWe are what we eat: the demise of the ethical grocery shopper<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4265/original/woolworths2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C6%2C383%2C253&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The budget shopper is alive and well - but what of the "ethical" shopper?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Woolworths</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1954, American consumer behaviour academic, Gregory Stone <a href="http://www.jstor.org/pss/2772780">identified</a> four different types of consumers. </p>
<p>Consisting of 150 in-depth interviews, Stone’s research found there was an “economic” shopper, who was after bargains, a “personalising” shopper, who liked interaction with staff, and an “apathetic” shopper, who was disillusioned and unengaged in shopping activity. </p>
<p>Then there was the “ethical” grocery shopper – consumers who demonstrated a moral obligation to patronise local merchants, purchase locally produced products and felt the need to “shop where they ought to”. </p>
<p>This ethical shopper was willing to sacrifice lower prices, convenience and range, in order to “help the little guys out”.</p>
<p>The idea of the <a href="http://www.ethical.org.au/">ethical shopper</a> has since taken hold in mainstream retailing. </p>
<p>But my new research has suggested that socially responsible consumption may be a thing of the past. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=522&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=656&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=656&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4273/original/buechertiger.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=656&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Flickr/Buechertiger</span></span>
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<h2>Four types of shopper</h2>
<p>A study and analysis of 280 Australian grocery shoppers I have conducted has found there are essentially four types of modern shopper; “budget-conscious”, “controlled”, “busy” and “apathetic”. </p>
<p>Stone’s “ethical” shopper seems to have disappeared.</p>
<p>After an extensive review of the literature relating to shopping behaviour and important supermarket attributes, I constructed a 71 item questionnaire survey to collect data from supermarket shoppers.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.statsoft.com/textbook/cluster-analysis/">Cluster analysis</a> was undertaken in order to define homogeneous groups of shoppers. These cohorts of shopper were compared against previous studies. </p>
<p>Although the research detected behavioural consistencies between the identified groups of Australian shoppers and previous international research, it also revealed the disappearance of Stone’s “ethical” shopper.</p>
<p>I reviewed 21 shopper typology studies, across several retail channels, from the 1950s until 2003. </p>
<p>The “apathetic” shopper was present in many, presenting as someone disengaged and uninterested in shopping activity. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4274/original/sportsuburban.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Flickr/Sportsuburban</span></span>
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<p>In contrast, the “controlled” shopper demonstrated a willingness to take the time to complete their grocery shopping in a methodical and planned manner. </p>
<p>The “busy” shopper completed their shopping at the fastest rate and paid the highest amount per item, which correlated to their avoidance of price checking. </p>
<p>The largest group, the “budget-conscious” shopper, was also strongly represented in other studies. </p>
<p>This shopper compared prices of products and visited other supermarkets in order to save money. They purchased lower quality, generic brands to reduce expenditure.</p>
<p>What was missing was ethical and socially responsible shopping behaviour in the supermarket. </p>
<h2>Milk wars</h2>
<p>So what does this mean for retailers – and consumers? The widely reported great supermarket price war all began when Coles brandished their home-brand milk at $1 per litre. </p>
<p>Since then, Coles and Woolworths have been trying to outdo one another with substantial and permanent price reductions. </p>
<p>Such action has lead to significant debate (and a <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/economics_ctte/dairy_industry_09/report/b01.htm">Senate inquiry</a>) surrounding the sustainability of such price discounting, the impact on small retailers, market dominance and consumer choice.</p>
<p>Both retailers have argued that we live in a market-driven economy and supermarkets are giving their customers what they want – lower-priced groceries.</p>
<p>Consumer groups have welcomed the discounting, suggesting that price reductions, leading to lower food expenditure, is a good thing for Australian consumers who are finding it difficult to make ends meet each week.</p>
<p>In contrast, primary industries groups, brand manufacturers and smaller retailers have proffered such long-term, continued price discounting will lead to farmers leaving the land, less product choice and the demise of the local grocer.</p>
<h2>What consumers want </h2>
<p>So, while Coles keeps “driving prices down” and Woolworths continues to “knock prices down” are they really giving Australian consumers what they want? </p>
<p>Well, yes they are. Shoppers want cheap milk, bread, eggs (and items such as lamb) and that’s what they’ll get.</p>
<p>The research suggests that the majority of grocery shoppers today rarely consider social responsibility when purchasing grocery products or when selecting supermarkets. </p>
<p>When given the choice of a two litres of supermarket homebrand priced at $2 compared to two litres of Maleny Dairy Farms milk at $4.29, it seems most shoppers will purchase the cheaper product. </p>
<p>This is of course what our major supermarkets are banking on.</p>
<p>But maybe it is time to look at the supermarket price wars a different way. </p>
<p>As consumers, we demand lower prices, discounts, specials, convenient trading times, fast service, car parking, and air conditioned comfort. </p>
<p>But with that comes consequences. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=803&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=803&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=803&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1009&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1009&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/4272/original/sean_macentee.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1009&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Flickr/Sean Macentee</span></span>
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<h2>Lower prices, fewer choices</h2>
<p>Yes, it can mean lower food prices and some increased competition between the two (or three) main players. </p>
<p>But it also possibly leads to fewer product choices for consumers. Yet shoppers appear to be happy to accept these conditions.</p>
<p>In a retailing context, ethical behaviour requires the shopper to behave in accordance with carefully thought out rules of moral philosophy – rules relating to right and wrong. </p>
<p>In other words, we know it is “right” to pay for our milk when we reach the registers.</p>
<p>Social responsibility, in the same context, focuses on the effects of shoppers’ actions.</p>
<p>This is simply, “I’ll buy the more expensive milk because I am supporting my local community, local farmers, local economy”.</p>
<p>There has been much interest in ethical and socially responsible consumption in recent years. </p>
<p>Studies that have considered ethical consumption have examined fair trading, organic products, free-range products, farmers markets and “freedom” foods. </p>
<p>The supermarkets have responded accordingly, with both claiming to support Australian farmers and local producers. (Remember the commercials of the Woolworths beef-buyer standing in the stock yards with an Akubra?)</p>
<p>Disappointingly, research that has attempted to examine ethical and socially responsible shopping behaviour in the supermarket has sampled only consumers who claim to be “socially responsible”.</p>
<p>Arguably, more research is required to identify what proportions of us are willing to forsake lower prices and convenience to be considered “socially responsible” shoppers.</p>
<p>In the meantime, does Stone’s “ethical” shopper still wander the aisles of our major supermarkets each week? I suspect not.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/3698/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gary Mortimer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In 1954, American consumer behaviour academic, Gregory Stone identified four different types of consumers. Consisting of 150 in-depth interviews, Stone’s research found there was an “economic” shopper…Gary Mortimer, Senior Lecturer, QUT Business School, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.