With an increasing amount of people becoming environmentally conscious, more and more products are being marketed as ‘green’. But products promoting sustainability aren’t always what they seem. Here to explain the good and the bad in green consumerism is ISU professor of marketing, Dr. Alexander Rose.
To define ‘green consumerism’, Dr. Rose explains it can be viewed as a political consumption movement where consumers ‘vote with their wallet’. But it is also a deliberate attempt to make individuals feel responsible for the environmental crisis society is facing. While green consumer acts such as reducing plastic consumption or commuting by bicycle are good, the solution to climate change is political action.
Green products are also difficult to market to general audiences, as they need to balance factors like price sensitivity and availability with the luxury of environmental sustainability.
