Key Idea
Increased global consumerism has vast environmental, economic, and social repercussions. Thought leaders across the globe investigate the unsustainable cultural values at the root of modern consumption.
Background
This film, shot in Ecuador, India, the Middle East, South Africa, and the U.S., provides perspectives from global thought leaders concerning the negative effects of consumerism and globalization. According to the Worldwatch Institute, the United States, with less than 5 percent of the global population, uses a quarter of the world's fossil fuel resources—burning up nearly 25 percent of the coal, 26 percent of the oil, and 27 percent of the world's natural gas—for mass production of goods and services.
Consumerism, the concept that an increasing consumption of goods is greatly beneficial to the economy was an intentional shift from product utility to desires. The origin of a consumer society as we know it today can be traced back to 18th century England. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, the availability of consumer goods greatly increased and for the first time consumers could choose to purchase goods because they wanted to rather than out of need. The rapid expansion of the advertising industry in the 1920s—when American corporations began linking mass-produced goods to unconscious desires—dramatically changed patterns of consumption around the world. Automobiles, television sets, clothing, and household appliances became widely used to express cultural values, and began to take on meaning and shape lifestyles. Consequences of mass consumption include severe environmental degradation, conflict over limited resources, health issues, unsustainable personal debt, and more.
Connections to National Standards
Connections to National Standards Common Core English Language Arts. SL.9-10.5 and SL.11-12.5. Make use of digital media (e.g.,textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understandings of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies Standards. D2.Eco.11.9-12. Use economic indicators to analyze the current and future state of the economy.
Next Generation Science Standards. HS-LS2-7. Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.
Setting the Stage
Introduce the film by asking students to define what it means to be a consumer during the holidays. How do they make choices on what they buy? What influences their decisions? Ask students to think about how they are persuaded by ads on TV or the internet. What makes a successful ad?
Engaging with the Story
Explain that students will watch a film that explores the role of consumerism on a global scale. Invite students to pay attention to the images in the film that represent a consumerist lifestyle. While watching the film, ask students to write a list of these images and consider which images stand out the most to them.
Delving Deeper
Reflecting and Projecting
Give students one of the following reflective writing prompts to demonstrate their understanding of the story. (Note for teachers: Just as quotes from a book or text are used to prove an analytical thought, students use the film to justify their reasoning.)
Resources
Christopher Lasch, "The Culture of Consumerism." Smithsonian Education.
Graham Hill, "Living With Less. A Lot Less." The New York Times, March 9, 2013.
Vicky Grinnell-Wright, "Consumerism Christmas - the sustainability dilemma." The Guardian, December 17, 2012.
Materials
Preparation
