Sustainability vs economy: greenwash or brainwash?

So green is the new black, even Argos are advertising environmentally friendly products such as recycling bins and rotary clothes lines. But I’m not so sure that anything has actually changed. Some retailers have made a real half hearted effort at looking sustainable. Despite Argos’s double page spread of green products they still sell patio heaters and their products are shipped from the other side of the world. Woolworths aren’t even bothering to try and are going with the economy instead: as prices on everything else are going up, woollies are selling kids clothes from 70p. The irony of getting an Asian man to advertise clothes made in Asia isn’t lost on me. But the fact remain that if they can afford to sell t-shirts for 70p then someone along the line is missing out. As things go from bad to worse in the UK economy its likely that more people will be making decisions based on price rather than sustainability or humanitarian issues. Reports show that sales of sewing machines are increasing and more and more people are learning how to make meals out of leftovers. Maybe we’re entering a new phase of economising where consumers are actually consuming less and making do with what they have rather than just replacing it with cheap items made by underpaid workers in developing countries. We can only hope.