As people, there are hundreds of types of media or products we consume daily and one of the most important things to do is to consider where it came from, why it was made, and to be mindful of who or what it is affecting. This doesn’t only mean environmentally wise, but arguably ethically and for your own good as well. The easiest place to start with this is the types of artists you actively give support to. For example, artists that are well known for their past actions, such as singer Chris Brown, who has been in numerous controversies that also include a domestic violence charge. There is no reason to disregard these actions. Art cannot be separated from the artist, as when listening to their music, you are directly supporting them, and everything they just so happen to stand for. To know what they’ve done, and to still support them anyways, it is plainly unethical and a disregard to common sense. Another similar disregard to ethics are blood diamonds. As it is well known, natural diamonds are frequently mined in other countries off the backs of child slave labor, with minimal wages and extremely brutal conditions. On top of also being more expensive than lab-grown diamonds, there’s also the attached baggage. Lab-grown diamonds are, by definition, physically, chemically and visually the exact same. Even experts cannot tell without testing them with extremely expensive equipment that no ordinary person would have. Most importantly, lab-grown are around 50-90% cheaper than natural diamonds while also being blood free. This is an example of being mindful when purchasing products. Something to also keep in mind when purchasing things, is that of clothes. Fast fashion has taken the industry by storm and has forced the quality of clothes in recent years to plummet. Instead of finding mostly cotton or natural fibers, polyester is the more commonplace material these days. The unsustainability of this cannot be overstated, as polyester not only looks worse, it doesn’t last as long with daily wear, and takes forever to break down fully in the environment due to microplastics. Fast fashion is only feeding into overconsumption and overproduction, leading to landfills filled with clothes that have never been worn or loved, and only serve to turn a profit and pollute the environment in doing so. Lastly, consuming AI content is not only terrible for the environment, it is, more importantly, horrible for maintaining crucial critical thinking skills. Generative AI removes arguably the most important aspect of any creative medium, which is the human aspect. Thankfully, all of these are easily resolved. While no one is perfect, and nothing can be perfectly ethically sourced all the time, keeping where and how the things you consume in mind is a perfect place to start.
