Coronavirus and sustainable smart consumption

During the past month the coronavirus pandemic has caused billions of people to reset their daily lives and has given people the opportunity to begin living a more sustainable life. In the midst of this pandemic, we have seen shortages in products such as toilet paper, paper towels, meat and extremely important items like masks, gloves, and sanitizers. These shortages are caused by people buying too much of these products that they do not necessarily need, causing others their basic necessities.

Supply and Demand

In the article, “Path to Goal Zero Blog: COVID-19 Could Be the Trigger to Mitigate Waste”, Dave Gajadar believes that the coronavirus pandemic will be a behavioral trigger to prove that smart consumption is the way forward. The coronavirus pandemic has caused shocks to the supply and demand chain like nothing we have ever seen before. Smith writes, “In general terms, an economic shock is an unpredictable or unexpected event that impacts the broader economy, and it can affect supply and demand” (2020). During this pandemic we are experiencing both supply and demand shocks. These shocks are causing stress among our citizens, while extremely burdening the United States economy. One issue that is making the supply shock worse is the impact of certain people over- consuming products. Since the start of this pandemic, social media has been full of pictures and videos of people buying way more products than they need, resulting in others getting none. In the picture below, you can see what I mean. 

Now, how can anyone need this much toilet paper? This is just one of thousands of pictures that have gone viral during this pandemic of people over consuming products that they do not need. People like this do not realize how much harm they are doing by over consuming. They are placing more of a burden on our economy and hindering others from getting products that they need. In order for our supply and demand chains to get back on track people need to stop over consuming and begin living sustainable lives, where they only buy and consume what they need to survive instead of over consuming.

Overconsumption in the Tragedy of the Commons  

One article that is complementary to this is Hardin’s “Tragedy of the Commons”. The tragedy of the commons is an economic problem that results in overconsumption. Individuals behave in their own self-interest which doesis not meeting the equal optimal social outcome. During the coronavirus pandemic we see the tragedy of the commons everywhere. People are hoarding products like masks and toilet paper leaving none left for others. If such individuals continue to act in their own self-interest the entire population will fail. Hardin writes, “As a rational being, each herdsman seeks to maximize his gain” (Hardin 1244). In the tragedy of the commons, every man is compelled to increase what he has to better himself, irrespective of other’s needs. Hardin writes, “Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all” (Hardin 1244). In this time, men and women must think of others for the better of society. We should not hoard products but instead only buy what we need to survive, otherwise society will fail in this pandemic.

Resetting Lives for Sustainability

In the wake of this pandemic, people need to begin practicing sustainability and smart consumption. Ratcliffe’s article, “Use Coronavirus to Reset Your Life for Sustainability”, highlights how this pandemic has caused millions of people to change their everyday habits, and how we should take this as a chance to change for the better. I have even begun to do this in my own household. For years now I have tried to teach my parents about sustainable living, but being away at college it is hard to keep track of their habits. They have always bought plastic water bottles and other products that are awful for the environment. When I realized I would be home for months with them I decided it was time for a change. I bought them a brita filter and consequently we have not bought plastic water bottles in a month. It is little things like this that can make a huge difference. 

Ratcliffe gives many other ideas for resetting our lives for sustainability. He says that we should permanently ration our toilet paper and paper towel usage. Dave writes, “If you halve your toilet paper usage, you’ll save money and help reduce the millions of tons of paper that goes unrecycled annually” (2020). Other ideas include killing your commute, planning on sustainable shopping, and building a local network of friends and food. Here is a quote from Ratcliffe that I believe is very important:

 “COVID-19 is a shock but not unprecedented. Previous generations have dealt with Spanish flu, cholera, and bubonic plague, to name just a few. The difference is that today these diseases fly around the world with us instead of passing months on boats between distant shores, journeys on which the carriers of infection often died. The result was a slower spread, yet each of these diseases killed millions. And then humans go on. The question we can ask ourselves this time is: How would we like to use the COVID-19 disruption to our lives to improve the world? We can move beyond the narrow-minded pursuit of survival and become more sustainable by examining our lifestyles and the assumptions they rest on. The many individual tragedies of lost life caused by coronavirus can contribute to changes that help heal the planet. If you act on this opportunity to examine your life with an eye to improved sustainability” (Ratcliffe 2020). 

Continuing after COVID-19

The most important thing is that we continue to practice sustainability after the coronavirus pandemic has ended. Not only should we try and reset our lives while we have the chance, but we must continue these practices after we get back to our normal lives. Coronavirus has been a global tragedy that has affected billions of people, but we have a chance to create silver linings by beginning to live sustainably and start saving our planet.

Devin Murphy is a senior majoring in Political Science, with minors in Urban Studies and Public Administration.

Sources

https://voxeu.org/article/coronavirus-pandemic-and-us-consumption

https://www.stlouisfed.org/open-vault/2020/march/supply-demand-shocks-coronavirus

https://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/162/3859/1243.full.pdf

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