Consumption in Sweden  Why do we consume a lot? Today's global recession   New ways to consume Measure your own ecological footprint  What can we do?  Discussion  Sources

Welcome to our homepage "No man is an island"! This is our project for Young Masters Programme, hope you will enjoy it!

This homepage is all about consumption in Sweden, the global recession, new ways to consume and simple tips of things we all can do in our daily lives.

What do we mean with "No man is an island" then?  

Well, if we consume a lot here in Sweden it will not only affect ourselves, no it will affect the whole world in a deeper perspective. We mean that we have to work together; no one can stand alone though "No man is an island". If we all work together we can come very far when it comes to the environment.

We are all in the same boat and we have to row with the oars we have!

NEWS: We now also have a blog www.nomanisanislandblogg.blogspot.com where we will share some opinions of ours and news. The blog will keep you updated.

You are welcome to visit it and we hope you will enjoy it!

NEWS: Measure your own ecological footprint.

NEWS: New discussion about low-energy bulbs. Check it out!

Consumption in Sweden
"Reduce, reuse, recycle and.........respect"
How much do we consume in Sweden? Household consumption consumed society more than 13 000 billion Swedish kroner in 2007.  But this is not something that is choking because the consumption in Sweden has always been high. One problem is that we consume a bit too much energy here in Sweden.

Another huge problem is overconsumption of foodstuffs. For example shops and private persons throw away a lot of food. The majority has the fridge so overfull that they do not have time to eat up everything in time. The food dries, rots, wilt and at least get thrown in the garbage. This problem with throwing away food is as big as the problem with the water we would say. To throw away food is as bad as submit the crane running! Every Swede thorows away about 100 kilos of esculent food every year! That is a lot of energy and resources that are wasted!

Especially the increased consumption of milk and meat join to increased problem with the water resource. In order to produce 1 kg meat between 5 000 and 20 000 litres of water are needed. Imagine that!

To quote Gandhi; "there is enough for everyone's need on earth, but not for everyone's greed".   

 

Why do we consume a lot?

Well, we have to consume some products on a daily basis like food and water (luckily in Sweden we have clean water in the tape so we do not have to buy it, but most parts of our world do not have the same luck with the water as we have). We also need clothes, soap, shampoo and toothpaste. But it is not this consumption we want to discuss, it is the consumption of products we do not always need. The question is; when does it get too much? If you ask us it gets too much at the point when we have more then we need and people in other parts of the world has less then they need. What gives us the right to consume so much more then others when the environment belongs to everyone and is a limited resource?

We consume because we want to have a strong economical, we need the high consumption to keep the wheels spinning.  But a strong economical is not the only cause why we want the newest iPod for example although we have the model before. We believe we have this kind of consumption because we want people to like us and many of us think the newest iPod will give us that. At the end of the day all people wants to loved, no matter who they are or where they from. The truth is also that we do not appreciate the newest iPod as much as friendship and love. Maybe have to take a few steps back before we can move forward?

 

Today's global recession
Not a day goes by without hearing about the recession. Every where we turn we will see the signs, the headlines of the papers, the news and empty stores. A strong economical depends much on consumption. All the politicians want to break free from the recession by getting people to consume more. How about the environment? It does not feel good by much consumption. When it comes to the economical and the environment we can realize one thing; without our environment we will not have to worry about economics because it would not exist. By that we can conclude that we have to take care of our environment in hard times too.

Today's global recession is very similar to the depression in 1929. How did today's recession start and in which way is it similar to the depression in 1929?  How will we get out of it? How does it affect the environment?

Today's recession started in the United States with a "house bubble" that broke. The banks had given lone to people who only could make it since the rate of interest was low. When the rate of interest became higher, a lot of people could not pay their loan anymore and they had to sell their house. A lot of people tried to sell their houses at the same time and the prices went down. A lot of people lost money. Those people could not pay off their loans and the banks lost money. Some of the banks went bankruptcy; one of them was Lehman Brothers (the forth biggest investment bank in the States). When Lehman Brothers went bankruptcy it caused panic around the world. Also, we live in a global world so the crises in USA affected the whole world.

The depression back in 1929 also started in the States. The problem was that people had bought stocks for money they had borrowed and when the stocks got less worth, people lost their money. Basically it was the same problem as today only the matter of stocks then and houses now. The problem then and today as well is also an over production to lacking of consumption.

So, how do we get out of the depression then? We think we have to do something similar to “the new deal” (the solution of the depression in 1929) and it meant that Roosevelt invested in infrastructure so more people got jobs and the consumption increased again. So, the answer to the question must be an increasing consumption but that would affect the environment. That is why we have to find new ways to consume so we can both have a sustainable environment and strong economics. We have to invest in infrastructure just as well as Roosevelt did and we also have to invest in the environment so we are ready when the next boom will be here. It will not be easy but one thing is certain, we have to try!

New ways to consume

Well, we have already drawn the conclusion that we have to consume if we want to have a strong economic but we have to find new ways of consuming. We could consume more organic and fair-trade (makes sure people are doing fine). We may need to buy more second hand, it is unique too! Maybe the future also consists of more service directed business.

 

Measure your own ecological footprint

Do you have any clue which size your ecolocical footprint has? Do you have any idea which part of your consumption that increases your carbon footprint the most? Do you know how many earthes we would need if everybody lived like you do?  Answer some question about where you live, how you live and how you consume at www.myfootprint.org and find out! Go to ABOUT THE QUIZ and then WHAT IT MEASURES.

 

What can we do?
We want to share some simple tips we can all do in our daily life to decrease our ecological footprints.

Here they are, hope they will be of gret use! 

- Why not try to buy groceries that are produced nearby? They may also taste better.

-Try to find products that are organic in the amount you can, not just for the environment but for you too! Imagine all the chemicals you will avoid.

- Eat food adapted after the environment [1]. You will then get food that contains most nutrients and the food does not have to travel as far as it had to do in other cases.
- Try not to throw away the food you buy (if you still can eat it or eat it in time instead). We have to remember that it takes a lot of energy to produce the products we buy.
- Close the tap while you brush your teeth or take and close the tap when you shower and shampoo your hair. Water is the liquid that needs the most energy to get hot.

- When you do your laundry make sure you fill the washing machine. You will then save some water. It is important since water is a limited resource that most parts of the world lack. 

- Take it slower when you drive your car. If you slow down your speed from 110 km/h to 90 km/h and you drive 600 miles you will save 250 kilos of carbon dioxide [2].

- Why not take a walk instead of the car more often? Or why not ride your bike? It is good for your health too! If you exchange 12O miles you go by car and instead ride your bike you will save 250 kilos of carbon dioxide [3].

- Eat less meat. If you exchange every forth meal of meat with pod, a family of four will save 250 kilos of carbon dioxide in a year [4]

 - Change nine 60-watt light bulbs with low-energy bulbs. You will then save 250 kilos of carbon dioxide [5].  Low-energy bulbs can be discussed though, read more about in the discussion. 

- Plant a tree! If you plant 21 trees they will absorb 250 kilos of carbon dioxide in one year. They will also continue to absorb for a couple of years [6] .

- Classify your garbage and recycle paper.

-Take care of your batteries by putting them in a certain garbage were they belong. By that you make sure no heavy metals leak into the environment.

- Do not press stand-by on the electronic equipment that you do not use for the  moment. Switch them off instead.

- Let rooms you do not use for the moment stand switched off.

- Borrow books at your closest library. It is free and it is good for the environment since more people can use the same book and we do not have to print as many books as we must had done in other cases [7].

 

Discussion

Organic products and products produced nearby

If organic and products that are produced nearby always is best can be discussed. According to Marit Paulsson, a Swedish politician it is way more important to eat leftovers then organic and products produced nearby because the Swedes throw away about 100 kilos esculent food per person every year.

She support her theory on some research which shows that organic food is not sustainable since half of the harvest goes to waste without any chemicals and the farms then need more field to come up to the same harvest as the other farms have. But the problem is that our earth does not have all this land.

She does not support biocide but she believes that we need to find better, more environmental friendly biocide.

She also thinks that products produced nearby not are much better because many people take their car to the farm.

We think that she is correct when it comes to the organic part but no chemicals are good for all of us. We believe people should eat organic in the amount they can. Then it is not reasonable to support the whole population of the earth on organic food.

We do not agree with her when it comes to the products produced nearby. If you drive your car to the closest farm to buy a cucumber instead of driving to the store and buy a cucumber from Spain for example you do not let out more carbon dioxide, instead you let out less carbon dioxide since the distance to the farm is shorter then the distance to the store and Spain.     

 

Low-energy bulbs 

Low-energy bulbs can also be discussed. They save energy, change nine 60-watt light bulbs with low-energy bulbs and you will save 250 kilos of carbon  dioxide every year [5]. Light bulbs are these days forbidden in Sweden and EU since September this year (2009). The question though, is if they are better then light bulbs? Low-energy bulbs contain mercury which is one of the most dangerous toxic substance injurious to the environment. The metall which is a heavy metal is a threat against the human health and our environment. The heavy metal affect the brain and nervous system. Mercury is an element and that means it can not be broken down; only accumulate in water, the ground and organisms. The more mercury we use in our societies, the more the

content of mercury in our environment increases. Because of that it is important that we use as little mercury as possible.

Sweden and EU have worked and are working hard to the reduce the use of mercury. Inter alia, children thermometers and thermormeters over all do not contain mercury anymore. Products that contain mercury and mercury were forbidden in Sweden the 15th January 2009 by the Swedish government and the prohibition started to count the 1st July this year (2009).  Although the work of reducing the use of mercury and the prohibition of mercury in Sweden, light bulbs were forbidden so people should use low-energy bulbs containing mercury instead. The equation does not have a valid solution.

 

If you drop a cold low-energy bulb in your home DO NOT use the vaccum cleaner since there is a risk that the mercury is diveded and then steam the mercury and spread them into the air where people can breathe it. Instead, pick up the rests by using a pice of cardboard and put the rests including the cardboard in a jar and close the jar. Write "can contain mercury" and leave it at your closest recycling plant which recieve harmful substances to the environment.

 

If you drop a warm low-energy bulb it is even more dangerous and then you have to ventilate by opening the windows, close the doors to the room and evacuate your home for 30 minutes since mercury in gasform is spread in the room and mercury in gasform is easy to inhale. DO NOT use the vacuum cleaner, since there is a risk that the mercury is diveded and then steam the mercury and spread them into the air where people can breathe it. Instead, pick up the rests by using a pice of cardboard and put the rests including the cardboard in a jar and close the jar. Write "can contain mercury" and leave it at your closest recycling plant which recieve harmful substances to the environment.

 

Low amounts of mercury during a long period are dangerous.

 

The question is which is most dangerous for the environment; the mercury or the content of carbon dioxide the light bulbs are secreted. Mercury is dangerous in itself, carbon dioxide is not but when we derange the circulation of carbon it leads to consequences. We think mercury is more dangerous, but we still have to reduce the content of carbon dioxide but low-energy bulbs is not the way to do it if you ask us. 

Sources
http://epubl.ltu.se/1402-1552/2006/143/LTU-DUPP-06143-SE.pdf

5th May, 22.02 PM
http://veganisverige.blogspot.com/2008/08/verkonsumtion-av-mat.html 

5th May, 22.14 PM

http://www.dn.se/ekonomi/din-ekonomi/ekologisk-mat-raddar-inte-varlden-1.837217 

5th June, 13.57 PM

http://www.kemi.se/templates/Page____3320.aspx 

5th November, 13.10 PM

http://www.karlstad.se/apps/symfoni/karlstad/karlstad.nsf/$all/9373645D598CFEBEC125754D003D9AA3 

5th November, 13.17 PM

http://www.kemi.se/templates/Page____5266.aspx

5th November, 15.50 PM

[1] Tell, Johan 2007: 100 sätt att rädda världen…(100 ways to save the world…). Bokförlaget Max Ström

[2] Tell

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