Since I was a child, my family has been stern on the fact that our environment is fragile and that we need dire change of our habits and products that are currently in our world today. So, for my life, I’ve had this interest about the outdoors and what I can do to help it. But I always thought it was simple. I always thought change was easy, and after looking into different businesses through this project, I’ve realized that it may be the hardest thing for a company to do.
Becoming more sustainable needs focus from the consumer and the company, not one or the other. One of the hardest thing to do for many people is change–habits, purchases, etc. This is exactly what is required, though. These Third Generation Corporations are bringing change to current industries for the sake of being more sustainable and acting as disrupters when doing so. Bite toothpaste disrupts major oral hygeine companies by asking users to make a switch from a tube of toothpaste to a bitable tablet; Bird Scooters brings an alternative from cars and disrupts major car corporations. The downside is that people may not be willing to make changes in their lives like that just to save some tubes of toothpaste or lower their carbon footprint. Sure, die hard environmentalists would do that in a heartbeat, but a common consumer who would only really be buying Bite to feel like they’re doing something good will probably second guess their choice when they find out the change they would have to make. The matter of fact is, if we don’t buy Bite or other kinds of products like that, consumerism needs to drastically lessen in the world, which is unfortunately not very realistic.
Consumers are either drawn in or scared away by price. Everyone wants what is cheap and affordable. But, the reality is, most of these sustainable products and companies don’t come cheap; organic materials naturally rise cost and could break the bank for some consumers. It is because of this that becoming more sustainable is more and more challenging. Most consumers will weigh the costs and benefits of products they are purchasing, and some people will conclude that pricier goods aren’t worth the benefits they bring. I mean, one person not purchasing something environmentally friendly won’t make a different, right? Thinking on a large scale, probably not; but if everyone thinks like this, the green corporations will not make any headway on becoming the next generation of product and design.
Being a biology and environmental science major, it is nice to be able to learn about many different companies that are being sustainable. There is progress, but I think there still needs to be a major shift in consumerism and the market to make more headway. It is on us to make changes to our lives with the help of wonderful companies that allow us to do so.