Socially Conscious Consumerism

Socially Conscious Consumerism

 As the Holiday season is upon us I immediately jump to this topic every time.  Should we participate as socially conscious consumers?  Should we be aligning our core values and code of ethics with our purchases? For me, this is a no-brainer. Of course! Whenever and wherever possible, I try and make purchases based on a company’s mission, their contribution to making the world a better place, their ethics and if they are local or a small business.  

I feel it is my duty to do my part to aid them in their altruism and to help maintain their viability to stay in business.  If you want to help the environment buy from locally sourced, fair trade, low carbon emission production techniques, sustainable practices and products.  If you want to help society’s marginalized try and find businesses who are directly or indirectly funding them.

Many businesses adopt charities and organizations and donate percentages of their profits to them.  Some businesses are more direct in their impact than others, some you will need to do a little research. 

 On the other hand, some companies are the antithesis of this and perhaps not spending money with them is an excellent way to send the message. If we help perpetuate companies that don’t align with our ethics and values we assist in their profitability and help perpetuate them. 

 If we all decided not to purchase items wrapped in excessive packaging and plastic, companies would have more pressure to reduce waste. If we bought from sustainable companies or those that support funding hospitals, ending homelessness or disease, we would then be perpetuating those company’s abilities to carry out their mission. 

 It’s that simple, and that hard. It can take time to research company ethics, other companies promote their work and make it is very easy.  Some companies are overtly sustainable or make their contributions and support well known. If you don’t want to do the work, look for the ones that are overt, and try to do most of your shopping with them. Match your conscious with your wallet,  it‘s a highly effective way to help support those that align with your beliefs and values. HAPPY SHOPPING!