Who knew saving the world could be so affordable?

In February 2023, the e-commerce company Temu launched in Canada, making the dream of ‘shopping like a billionaire’ a reality. In the weeks following, it dominated the Apple and Android download charts and it’s not hard to see why, given its game-like user experience and masterful use of retail manipulation.

While Temu made its debut earlier this year, it’s only one data point contributing to the ever-growing trend of consumerism and the death of our planet.

The 1920s was a turning point for capitalism, as this was when the notion of people being consumers became commonplace. Buying on credit was becoming increasingly popular as many in the industrialized world aimed for a standard of living beyond basic necessities.

Today, Canada is ranked 16th globally in terms of its ecological footprint per person, at 7.9 global hectares. This number is determined by taking into account the amount of land and water that provides resources used for consumption, and the amount needed to absorb the waste generated for that consumption. According to the Global Footprint Network, to live within the means of our planet’s resources, each person would have to be at the level of 1.6 global hectares. We’re currently over four times this level.

As students, we have a vested interest in the state and future of our planet, given that we live in it. But with global warming, conflicts, and – in the wise words of Jaden Smith – “the political and economical state of the world right now,” it can get pretty overwhelming. 

When you’re struggling to balance your school, work, and social life, you can hardly be blamed for struggling to find the time or means to reduce your ecological footprint. And it doesn’t help that a lot of popular tips for being more environmentally conscious tend to be expensive and unrealistic for most of us. While I would love to buy a $200 ethically-sourced t-shirt, I’m not ready to cut into my already limited ramen budget.

But what if I told you that saving the planet is not only easier than you might think, but will also save you money in the process? 

We tend to buy a lot of things that we don’t need. Just look at the wide-spread popularity of consumer platforms like Temu bringing in an estimated six billion USD yearly. And let’s not forget the billions generated by fast-fashion brands closer to home like Zara, H & M, and Old Navy to name a few.

As consumers, where we spend our dollars speaks volumes and the message is loud and clear: it doesn’t matter if what we bought falls apart shortly after, because we’ll just buy another.

While buying a new product is great at contributing to our momentary happiness and beneficial for businesses, the planet and your bank account can’t share the same sentiment.

According to earth.org, 1.92 million tonnes of textile waste is produced each year, and the number of times a garment is worn has gone down by about 36 percent in the last 15 years. Imagine all that waste. It doesn’t help that compared to the 2000s, fast fashion brands are producing twice the amount of clothes.

Now, I can’t claim innocence in this situation any more than the next person can. 

I remember there was a time where I would buy clothes without any regard for whether they could be used beyond a few washes. It didn’t cost me much to get in the first place, so I didn’t really place a lot of value on the garment.

But my attitude started to shift after I started to make pieces for my closet myself. A simple semi-chunky knit sweater would take days to make, and the material costs of yarn didn’t take long to add up. I couldn’t imagine how a comparative piece could sell for so cheap at large retailers.

After going through the process of making clothes, I began to understand the value and how much really goes into making them. Sure, major corporations have machinery to expedite processes and connections for cost-effective raw materials, but there’s still human capital required. And the fact of the matter is, garment workers of these fast fashion companies are underpaid and forced to work in inhumane conditions. 

The steady stream of “BOGO” (Buy One Get One) sales and clearance events are made possible partly due to the exploitation of human beings.

Of course, not all fashion companies are like this. There are some that do a great job in balancing people, planet and profits. But as much as I would love to solely purchase from these brands, they tend to be on the expensive side, and as a student I just don’t have that kind of disposable income.

Many of you reading this may find yourselves in a similar boat. Wanting to consume ethically and save the planet, but not in the financial standing to do so at the moment. So what can we do?

First, we need to put further purchasing on the back burner.

We all know the three Rs by heart: reduce, reuse and recycle. For the most part, we’re really good at two of the three. We reuse clothes we don’t wear anymore by donating so others can, and we recycle plastic bottles. But we tend to forget about the first and arguably the most important R, reduce.

The best way of reducing what ends up in landfills is to use less in the first place (here’s where saving your wallet comes in).

When I started to make my own clothes, I also became more knowledgeable about how to care for textiles. Given that I put so much heart and effort into creating the garment, I wanted it to last as long as possible and the best way to make sure that it did was to take care of it.

I’ve learned a lot from my fiber art endeavors. Here are some of the ways I pull from that experience to consume consciously:

1. Don’t buy something that is too much work to maintain – when I make clothes, I make sure to use materials that are suited to what is being used. Something like a hat, I’ll make with synthetic yarn. While plastics aren’t good for the environment, I know I’ll keep it for a long time because it can easily be thrown in the washer and dryer with no problem. But if I make a hat with, say, silk yarn, then I know I probably won’t have the time to hand wash and air dry something that would be used more frequently. The improper care of it will have me having to obtain a new one sooner.

When shopping, I look at clothing tags to see what the material is made out of, and if I’m willing to invest time to properly take care of it. 

2. Invest in the good stuff, or at least buy less of the not so good – as I’ve mentioned before, buying ethically can be expensive and not always a viable option. But even if you have to buy from fast fashion companies, make sure you’re not buying more than you need.

There’s been a huge trend of fashion hauls on social media, where individuals will spend incredible amounts of money on clothes they couldn’t hope to actually wear. After their content, they’ll donate it to charity organizations and thrift stores.

While it’s good to donate what you don’t need, it’s better to not buy so much in the first place.

3. Learn to mend – how many clothes have you had to throw out because of a tear or an impossible stain? Did you really have to part with it?

Learning the basics of sewing can help to cut down on your consumption, because if you’re able to fix what you have, you won’t need to go out and get a new one all the time. And, it can also be a way to express yourself creatively. 

Don’t stop at just learning to fix loose buttons – dabble in patchwork, embroider flowers over that grape juice stain.

In developed nations we have a huge issue with overconsumption. Throughout this article I mainly talked about fashion, but the waste we produce manifests in many different forms such as electronic waste (which makes up over 70 percent of toxic waste) and food (about a third of it is wasted globally every year).

The tips I talked about can be applied broadly: Reduce e-waste by repairing the broken screen of your otherwise perfectly fine phone, rather than getting a new one. Don’t buy more food than you can hope to eat.

Reusing and recycling is great – but it’s even more effective when reducing is prioritized.

It would be remiss to talk about reducing consumption without talking about the forces that work against doing so: Planned and perceived obsolescence.

Planned obsolescence is where companies purposely manufacture products that aren’t meant to last. Maybe you’ve heard older people complain about how “things aren’t made as good as they used to be,” – they’re right. The reason why companies do this is because they want you to keep buying more of their things.

For example, though Apple claims it slows down old phones to ‘prolong their lives’, the lawsuits put against them say otherwise. When Apple introduces new phones, one of the ways they try to get people to buy them is to cause problems with what they already have.

Perceived obsolescence occurs when we believe that a product no longer has worth, even though it’s perfectly fine. This can be easily seen with fashion. 

The hauls prevalent on social media that I mentioned earlier are fueled by the notion of perceived obsolescence. Clothes that are still wearable are discarded prematurely, simply because they don’t fit the ever changing rapid fashion cycles.

By understanding what influences your consumption behaviors, you can change it for the better. You can pat yourself on the back for doing your part in defending the world against environmental harm,  and with the money you save, maybe you’ll expand your diet beyond cup noodles.