Day 161 - Eco-friendly

 ECO-FRIENDLY

Prompt - Eco-friendly : Write about going green or an environmental concern you have

Capitalism has shown itself to be a bit shit this past year or so, hasn't it?  Needing to be bailed out by socialism.  Again.  The pandemic brought much misery, capitalism aggravated it.  Now it looks to regain it's dominance over us, as if so many wealthy leeches haven't profited enough already from the difficulties of others in these covid times.  

Yet the world has benefited from lockdowns in so many ways, and the wish to return to what was perceived a 'normal' looks likely to wipe away those gains.  Nature has been able to reclaim some of its losses.  We could hear birdsong in the city again, and the air smelt fresher.  The big drop in air travel, and travel generally, has been good for the atmosphere.  Returning to our old consumerist ways threatens to reverse those improvements.  

There are no easy answers.  Our society is structured in such a way that people have to 'make a living'.  The whole ethos is geared up to produce more, to sell, more to make us buy more, to keep the cycle going until the next disaster shows it up again.  Yet lockdown has demonstrated what we need, what (and who) is important to our lives.  You'd think people might see that the throwaway culture was not beneficial to any of us in the long run.  We've seen much needed improvements to the environment, perhaps not enough to stave off potential climate disaster, but clear signs of the best way forward.  But capitalism will ensure we soon forget.  It's begun already.

When lockdown recently ended in Edinburgh I went along Princes Street on a bus.  Only two shops had lengthy queues outside.  Primark and Zara.  Throwaway almost be definition.  Cheap, low quality, ephemeral products.  I've bought from both of them myself.  Now I'll try not to.

I already avoid the likes of Amazon for their tax avoiding antics.  Now I will try to stop myself from buying cheap, throwaway clothes.  It's not much, but every little step...

Perhaps I've always thought that way to some extent.  Much of my wardrobe is ten or even twenty years old, and still in use.  I do try to get rid of clothes I find I no longer wear, but to charity shops where possible (often not quite as altruistic as they would have you think, but at least the clothes get a new life with someone who'll appreciate them).  In their place I will try to make myself buy better quality, more classic styles of clothes, utility outfits that will be with me for years.  Of course that has a knock-on effect to the poor workers who manufacture the Primark type goods, but something needs to trigger change.  A pandemic hasn't done it, but maybe as many of us as possible making small changes could do.