This document discusses anti-consumerism activity online. It provides examples of groups and campaigns that promote reducing consumption and critique consumerism. These include Buy Nothing Day, which encourages reducing shopping, and Occupy Wall Street, which protests corporate influence and economic inequality. The document also discusses how some see consumerism as unsustainable and argue for more sustainable patterns of production and consumption. It provides examples of businesses and celebrities supporting more sustainable approaches.

1. Anti consumerism online
Ann Longley, Head of Social Media MEC
Visiting Lecturer
6 Dec 2011

2. Topics for today
Anti-consumerism
Recent activity
Implications for consumer PR

3. Topics for today
Anti-consumerism
Case studies
Implications for consumer PR

4. Consumption continuum
Anti-consumerism Ethical consumerism Consumerism
Anti-consumerism refers Ethical consumerism is the CONSUMERISM - a social and
to the socio-political intentional purchase of products economic creed that
movement against the and services that customers encourages us to aspire to ever
consider to be made ethically. more than our share of material
equating of personal
This may mean with minimal harm possessions, regardless of the
happiness with to or exploitation of humans, consequences.
consumption and the animals and/or the natural
purchase of material environment. Supporters of consumerist
possessions culture offer economic growth
Ethical consumerism is practiced as a solution to world poverty.
through'positive buying' in that They propose that impoverished
ethical products are favoured, or nations and individuals can
'moral boycott', that is negative eventually attain a standard of
purchasing and company-based living similar to our own through
purchasing. the 'trickle down' of wealth
http://www.enough.org.uk creation.
http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/ShoppingEthically/Topethicaltips/WhyBuyEthically.asp

5. Topics for today
Consumer empowerment
Recent Activity
Implications for consumer PR

6. Anti-consumerism in action

7. Culture jamming Canadian-style
http://www.adbusters.org/

9. Canadian ‘culture jamming’

13. Where did Buy Nothing Day come from?
Buy Nothing Day was started by Adbusters in the early 90's and has
grown into an international event celebrated all over the world.
What is so bad about shopping?
It’s not shopping in itself that’s so harmful, it’s what we buy. The rich
western countries - only 20% of the world population are consuming
over 80% of the earth’s natural resources, causing a disproportionate
level of environmental damage and unfair distribution of wealth. As
consumers, we should question the products we buy and the
companies who produce them.
The idea is to make people stop and think about what and how much
they buy effects the environment and developing countries.
Increasingly large companies use labour in developing countries to
produce goods because its cheap and there aren’t the systems to
protect workers like there are in the west.
http://buynothingday.co.uk/faq.html

14. Church of stop shopping
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wxjl2ERhnI

15. Ad busters in action
The ideology of the free market, once seemingly unassailable, lies in tatters. While the death
knell of capitalism may not yet be tolling, the crisis is undoubtedly of a different order of
magnitude than anything seen in decades. Crises can be openings: moments when the
stanchions are kicked out from under the status quo, when the pieties of the recent past fall
away and a revitalized sense of collective power takes shape.
http://www.adbusters.org/magazine/99/crises-can-be-openings.html

16. WHAT IS OUR DEMAND?
#OCCUPYWALLSTREET is a people
powered movement for
democracy that began in America
on September 17 with an
encampment in the financial
district of New York City. Inspired
by the Egyptian Tahrir Square
uprising and the Spanish
acampadas, we vow to end the
monied corruption of our
democracy.
http://http://www.occupywallst.org/

17. Manifesto
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb1aXmhu44o
http://http://www.occupywallst.org/

18. We are the 99%
http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/

19. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znlOIvi9joA&feature=related

20. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW8e95ITb1Y&feature=related

22. The London Riots – On “There are pockets of our
Consumerism coming society that are not only
Home to Roost broken, but frankly sick...It
By Zygmunt
09/08/2011
is a complete lack of
Bauman responsibility in parts of
“These are not hunger our society, people
or bread riots. These allowed to feel that the
are riots of defective world owes them
and disqualified something.” David
consumers.” Cameron
http://www.social- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn
europe.eu/2011/08/the-london-riots- ews/crime/8692996/London-riots-
on-consumerism-coming-home-to- David-Cameron-approves-water-
roost/ cannon.html

23. "Every time we witness an act that we feel to be unjust
and do not act we become a party to injustice."

25. Anonymous TV
http://www.youtube.com/user/0407Anonymous?feature=watch#p/a/u/0/99cNEOS9Gvw

26. Topics for today
Anti-consumerism
Recent activity
Implications for consumer PR

27. Sustainable development
Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most
frequently quoted definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the
Brundtland Report:[1]
"Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
It contains within it two key concepts:
the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to
which overriding priority should be given; and
the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization
on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs.“
All definitions of sustainable development require that we see the world as a
system—a system that connects space; and a system that connects time.
http://www.iisd.org/sd/

28. " To achieve sustainable development and
a higher quality of life for all people,
states should reduce and eliminate
unsustainable patterns of production and
consumption..." (our emphasis) Principle
8, The Rio Declaration on Environment
and Development, 1992

30. Businesses supporting sustainable
development
´Sustainability-Driven` Innovation means the creation of new
market space, products & services or processes driven by social,
environmental or sustainability issues”
http://www.adl.com/reports.html?view=13

31. Celebrities supporting sustainable
development

32. Strategic Philanthropy/
Social Enterprise
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQo4VoLyHe0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEZ30K5dBWU

33. Social enterprise
Ethical businesses like Toms keep fresh with new
cause marketing campaigns.

36. Principles of critical collaboration
Balancing power asymmetries
Acknowledging critical rights
Negotiating conflicting and converging
interests
Managing relationships with key
stakeholders
Jane Covey, Critical Collaboration: An alternative form of civil society -business engagement
http://www.worlded.org/docs/Publications/idr/pdf/17-1.pdf

37. THANK YOU
a.longley@gre.ac.uk
@annmargaret