In Australia, we do like to buy goods from overseas, from international foods, to
clothing, home furnishings, contributing to a heavier secondary footprint.
The Environmental Cost
Government assessments predict over 250,000 Australian homes may be at risk
from rising sea levels as a result of climate change. Of course, there are many
contributing factors to climate change, one being deforestation.
Deforestation and forest fragmentation have an adverse effect on the biodiversity
of animals and plants. Loss of biodiversity in Australia is of catastrophic proportions.
Clearing of forests affects local temperature and precipitation patterns; it increases
temperatures and reduces rainfall. Deforestation also increases the salinity of the soil
and a decline in soil fertility.
Land clearance in Australia, as elsewhere in the world, is driven by the inexorably
increasing human population and demand for socio-economic development. This all
has a flow on effect to the climate and the habitat of some people and animals. We
are seeing, in our lifetime, many plant and animal species near extinction.
Fast (Home) Fashion
Fast Fashion is a term that certainly has been getting some airplay and it’s not just
restricted to clothing. Furniture and homewares are heading the same way. Take a
look at some of the major clothing brands who are now offering home collections.
Since Industrialisation began, we have experienced a product design and economic
model based on what’s called ‘cradle to grave’, or ‘take; make; waste’. We have seen
market dominance of global furniture makers producing low cost and quality furniture
and home furnishings. While aesthetically pleasing, it’s simply not designed to last.
So we’ve been extracting material from the earth to eventually put back into landfill.
A study of rubbish collection found the average Sydney household disposes of 24kg
of furniture a year.
Also, since the time of the Industrial Revolution, there has been exploitation of
workers. Today, 20 million child workers are employed in factories that make
garments, carpets and other products. Most of the 200 million total child workers
though, are on farms that produce consumer products like cotton and other crops.
So it’s not only the Earth’s health we need to be mindful of, but our own, when we
are considering what we buy or what we use to decorate our homes with.
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