Facts & Advice

To become a conscious consumer you need to begin with understanding the problem with consumption today. We are all consumers – and today consumption is a lifestyle and everything is calling for us to consume. This lifestyle of course has an impact on nature. One way to measure that is by using the so-called Ecological Footprint. It measures the amount of resources we humans use to be able to own all the things we have. Everything that is produced has effects on the world’s forests, land, seas and freshwater. The ecological footprint estimates how much the earth’s renewable capacity is needed to produce everything that we consume and to take care of the waste that is created – regardless of where it happens. That way we get a good understanding of our consumption’s global effects. We have compiled facts and advice for conscious consumption.

 

The Climate Effects of Swedish Consumption

The average swede emits 8 to 10 tons of carbon dioxide through their private consumption. According to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency’s report “The Climate Effects of Swedish Consumption” 60% of emitted greenhouse gasses are caused by private consumption. Of those 60%, 30% is caused by “eating”, 20% is caused by “housing”, “traveling” stands for 30%, “clothes” causes 5% and 15% is caused by “other”.

It is rarely the case that we can see the effects our consumption has on our direct environment. Swedes buy a lot of imported goods and almost half of the emitted greenhouse gasses created by our consumption is from imports. The goods are often produced in countries far away from Sweden, where people suffer from the use of chemicals, outflows into soil and sea, and bad working conditions.

Conscious Consumer

Here we have gathered information and practical tools for how you can make small changes in your everyday life, that make a big difference for the planet. You get tips on what to think about as a conscious consumer and what labels to look for.

If you have any comments about our facts and advice or information about a subject we have not yet included, you are welcome to reach out to us with suggestions and comments. Mail us at info@medvetenkonsumtion.se.