ONE of the major drivers of the climate emergency is our consumption habits. A study in 2016 by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology’s Industrial Ecology showed that consumers are responsible for more than 60% of global greenhouse emissions and up to 80% of global water use (https://bit.ly/24qTKSY).
To produce goods and services to meet this demand, huge amounts of resources and energy are required. A focus on profits by companies mean that these goods and services are produced in a way that incurs the lowest cost, which may often cut corners at the expense of the environment. Environmental regulation often does not go far enough to penalise such companies due to economic and political interests.