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Companies that follow sustainable practices are often some of the most expensive.
Companies that follow sustainable practices are often some of the most expensive.
Sustainability is the new hot topic for many consumers who want to lessen their impact on the environment. As the state of Earth’s climate continues to decline , demand for sustainable products is rising. However, pursuing a sustainable lifestyle might not be the most attainable practice for college students. In reality, companies that follow sustainable practices are often some of the most expensive.
According to Urban Institute , dependent college students make $3,900 per year on average, while independent students make $13,880 a year. After considering potential factors like rent, gas, groceries and school-related expenses, there often isn’t much left to work with.
When brands use the image of sustainability to push their product, college students who want to uphold a more sustainable lifestyle may waste their money on products that are either too expensive or simply fake. Consider Everlane, a supposedly “ethical” and “radically transparent” company that has a reputation for going against their mission statement . Even if it wasn’t guilty of greenwashing, spending $108 on jeans just isn’t in the cards for most students.
“There is a big difference between sustainability and accessibility,” senior Molly Van Trees said. “A lot of brands have capitalized off of this aesthetic style of sustainability that involves bamboo brushes and fancy containers, but so much of it involves buying more stuff to replace your ‘unsustainable’ products when the truly sustainable thing to do would be to just use what you already have.”
In order to encourage consumers to purchase a company’s environmentally friendly products, the responsibility of leading a sustainable lifestyle is shifted onto the consumer. But, it shouldn’t be up to the consumer to purchase sustainable options when 100 individual companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions , according to the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre.
“I think that a lot of marketing places the burden of sustainability onto individuals but makes the options so economically inaccessible that we have no choice but to feel guilty for the things we can actually afford to buy,” Van Trees said.
When it comes to affordability, sometimes shopping on Amazon or Shein is the cheapest option for those who need products but can’t afford them elsewhere.
“Sustainable clothing is so alluring to me, and then it costs $250 for a pair of pants — that is not something I can afford,” Van Trees said. “It’s especially jarring, too, because sustainable products could be the most helpful to people who could benefit from having to replace things less often, but the people who can afford to replace their entire kitchen to have the matching sets of Mrs. Meyers natural soaps and bamboo brushes do so for the aesthetic and not out of necessity.”
Despite the hurdle of affording sustainable clothing, there are options for living a more sustainable lifestyle, such as thrifting your clothes, taking the bus, biking to school or growing a vegetable garden. Taking the time to change your lifestyle shouldn’t break the bank, but when considering the current market for sustainable products, it’s often unavoidable.
Many college students are drawn to companies like Shein, which are known for having cheap clothing. But oftentimes, such low prices come with claims of unethical working conditions. According to the British Broadcasting Corporation, some Shein employees have had to work up to 75 hours a week with only one week off a month . This goes without mentioning the increasingly fast trend cycle in which clothing is being produced and discarded. According to Bloomberg, clothing is being discarded quicker than ever at a rate of 2,150 pieces of clothing per a second being thrown away .
What students can do is to try to shop as small as possible. Buying a product that’s locally made not only helps the Harrisonburg community thrive but often is going to last longer than its Amazon equivalent. Making informed choices of your purchases not only helps yourself be satisfied with the item in question but also helps the person or company you choose to buy it from.
Additionally, purchasing clothing, decor and even home items that take time to make are usually of higher quality, which will often last longer due to more thought being put into each piece. If you’re looking to purchase new clothing, don’t shop from major fashion lines but rather small independent clothing manufactures.
At the end of the day, if Shein or Lulu’s is the only place you can afford to purchase cute clothing, then don’t place the blame of the climate crisis on yourself. It’s up to the corporations themselves to change their practices to limit their global emissions.
Taking the time to change your lifestyle shouldn’t break the bank, but when considering the current market for sustainable products, it’s often unavoidable.
Annie McGowan is a sophomore media arts and design major. Contact Annie at mcgow3ca@dukes.jmu.edu. For more editorials regarding the JMU and Harrisonburg communities, follow the opinion desk on Instagram and Twitter @Breeze_Opinion.
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