Going green in the capitalistic era

By: Parthvi

According to our history books, mankind has been in existence for 5,000 years, and the Earth has never been as polluted as it is now. The past 300 years of industrialisation have brought many comforts and luxuries for the human race, but, on the contrary, have had a detrimental impact on the environment. This difference can be discerned by studying the stark contrast in per capita emissions of developed, developing, and underdeveloped nations.

Governments around the world aim to claim the moral high ground by imposing restrictions on each other, but very few are genuinely committed to solving this problem pragmatically and permanently. Everyone prioritises the economy, but money won’t be edible when the soil is eroded, the rivers run dry, and trees become scarce. The root cause of this issue is mindless consumerism.

Even 300 years ago, people were living perfectly well without an excess of clothes, watches, cosmetic products, and the like. People consume items indiscriminately, whether they actually need them or not. With every penny we spend and every new product we purchase, we are depleting the Earth’s resources. Making just one shirt, for example, requires 2,700 liters of water, and it takes 1,500-3,000 liters of water to produce one kilogram of sugarcane, which is used to make sugar

Individual self-control in consumption is necessary; otherwise, we will leave behind a legacy of waste for the next generation. Going green alone is insufficient to mitigate this crisis; we must also practice self-control alongside it. Several studies indicate that going green has its own consequences. We need to limit human consumption and treat the entire ecosystem as our own. We, as a species, are not the only inhabitants of this planet. Our vision of progress should encompass the well-being of animals, plants, and the entire planet. We must put into practice the ideals of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” in our lives rather than merely preaching them on international platforms.