Consumed: The need for collective change; colonialism, climate change & consumerism

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the second half of the book focuses on action, which i was hype for. it’s easy (& true!!!) to say that the onus should be on corporations & the government to fix the problem of overconsumption & climate change, but that’s not an excuse to be finding small actions we can all take individually too. as someone who’s been plant-based for nearly 6 years for sustainability reasons, i am a strong believer in the combination of individual choices + collective action!! there are a ton of super accessible actions shared (& some that seem a little out-of-touch to anyone who’s not an influencer). for me, the main takeaway (& the one i have been prioritizing for the last 2-3 years) is that to be more sustainable, we just need to buy less shit. it’s easier said than done, but honestly, it’s really not that hard!! a little impulse control & some hobbies to turn your attention away from online shopping, voila. i swear i have felt so much happier with more free time (& money!!) & fewer clothing items that will ultimately end up in a landfill. Overall, this is essential reading for those looking to learn a little bit more about such important issues as colonialism, climate change and consumerism. We are all part of this system, and we can all play a part in changing it. So read this book, feel your anger, direct it to those with power, and get inspired to make an impact. As Barber says: “You are so powerful. Every decision you make on this planet has an effect.” This powerful, speaking-truth-to-power book is an essential read for everybody who wants to stop feeling clueless and helpless about the impacts of cosumerism, and start doing their part to help create a more sustainable world’– Layla Saad I think that Attenborough's 'A Life On Our Planet' is a great way to format books like these: start off with your witness statement (how the issue has personally impacted you), then delve into the reality of the issues (here is where the facts come in handy) and then a 'how we fix it' to tie it all up at the end. All of these elements were present in Aja's book, however they came in at random moments, accompanied by asides which were often productive discussion topics (e.g. the mispronunciation of ethnic names) but were put into sections about different issues entirely, which only detached you from what you had been reading previously.

Wells, Kaitlyn (18 July 2022). "Purging Old Clothes? Here's How to Responsibly Donate and Repurpose Your Castoffs". The New York Times. And when it comes to people who have spent years over-shopping, how does our thinking need to change?Barber’s isn’t just a voice we should listen to – it is a voice we MUST listen to.’ – Clementine Ford Another red flag was “learning about the history of how our clothing is made, and seeing every clothing tag with ‘made in’ countries where non-white people live.”

We live in a world of stuff. We dispose of most of it in as little as six months after we receive it. The byproducts of our quest to consume are creating an environmental crisis. Aja Barber wants to change this–and you can, too. ELLE UK unveils new sections, a design refresh and new contributors in the September issue". Hearst. 28 July 2022. The thing is, I don’t want to do this for the rest of my life. Because if I’m still doing this, it means that we haven’t fixed the problem. I want to inspire people to collectively fix the problems facing the fashion industry; I want to get money into the hands of people who deserve it—namely, garment workers—and then I want to dip out and write fiction books. I love what I do, but I don’t want to be the warning bell to people for the rest of my life. We need to stop thinking that new clothing is needed to have a better life. There are countless examples in the cult-classic films that we love— Clueless, Pretty Woman, The Devil Wears Prada, Funny Face—they all have a makeover scene where suddenly the person who is not accepted and not cool enough does a bunch of shopping, and now everybody’s looking at them differently and treating them differently. But in real life that’s not how it works. Moreover the “need” to get a new outfit for every single occasion, something that is very normalized in our society, is only adding to the problems of fast fashion. i think this is an super informative & wide-reaching foundational book to understanding the relationship between consumerism, colonialism, climate change, & other forms of oppression (primarily racism & classism). the author’s voice is super conversational (think: millennial blogger), making the content incredibly accessible & engaging.Stop buying so much. That is the one thing that we can do to disrupt the system, because as long as we say, “There’s nothing I could do about it, might as well go and buy 20 new dresses,” nothing’s going to change. So even if you take it all in and you find it very overwhelming, decreasing your consumption is a very conscious decision you can make in a system that feels like it has run amok. In July 2022 Barber was named a Contributing Editor to Elle (magazine) UK following the appointment of Kenya Hunt as Editor-In-Chief. [17] Economist Impact: What women-led initiatives are making waves in circular/slow fashion (or the circular economy in general)? Townsend, Solitaire (16 November 2020). "100 UK Leading Environmentalists (Who Happen To Be Women)". Forbes. In fact, all these things actually made me normal. The vast majority of the world doesn’t have generational wealth in that way. But they still made me feel “poor” at various times in my life.