Did you know that, according to the World Watch Institute, America wastes 96 billion pounds of food every year? Did you know that the U.S. consumes 25 percent of the world’s fossil fuels while holding only 4.4 percent of the world population? Did you know that Facing the Future conducted a study and discovered that the average U.S. citizen uses 300 shopping bags worth of raw materials each week?
With the summer months ahead of us, students out of school and vacations coming up, consumption is heavily promoted with sales, new clothing styles, new vacation gear and other products. Rampant consumption is considered an integral part of the typical American lifestyle.
The ideal American lifestyle is the shiny new car on a 16th birthday, more than a surplus of toys and goodies under the tree each year at Christmas, and let’s not forget the mentality of “if it’s broken, just replace it.” This lifestyle seems harmless, doesn’t it? I mean, one more broken Tickle Me Elmo in the trash won’t make a real difference. And of course, if you worked hard for your money, you should be able to spend it however you please.
But is this American lifestyle truly innocent? If everyone in the world could live the American lifestyle, we would need three planets to keep up with the consumption. This lifestyle is ruining the planet, and gradually destroying the planet’s future. The average person in America leaves an ecological footprint twelve times larger than the average person in India. Our planet’s resources are dwindling from overconsumption. This American way of living is inconsiderate to the rest of the world. We consume to our heart’s desire, not considering how we affect the planet and the future.
The future is not completely hopeless. Being “green” and following the three R’s (reduce, reuse, and recycle) are thriving throughout America now more than ever. There are more and more organizations springing up that promote homemade compost, greener transportation methods and recycling resources. Organizations like Green America, the U.S. Green Building Council and the EPA are helping different sectors of America reduce their consumption and become greener by reducing their ecological impact on the earth.
If Americans could find a balance of buying or consuming less while becoming less willing to throw out goods, we could dramatically change the destructive fate America has created ?for itself.
The rest of the world watches America through our triumphs and blunders. All eyes are on America to find new discoveries and take the world down new paths of innovation. We as Americans have an obligation to lead the world on the right path to prepare for the future. Let’s not go down in history as the country that destroyed the planet. Let’s not go down as the selfish jerks that were too busy worrying about the release date of the new iPhone 8 to realize the mess we’ve created. Let’s change the earth’s fate from destruction to survival. It’s time to show America its lifestyle needs to change, and it is our moral obligation to be an example for the world.
Carolyn Duke is a sophomore majoring in ?secondary education.
