The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change left us with a bleak forecast of our near future, projecting a 1.5 to 2 degree Celsius increase in global temperature from preindustrial levels, unless significant change is enacted. So, with what appears to be impending environmental doom just over a decade away, the concept of reduce, reuse and recycle seems more important than ever. While reducing and recycling are intuitive to most consumers, reusing (apart from metal straws and reusable bags) isn’t. There is, however, a method of reusing that you might not think of: secondhand products.
I’ve spent a good amount of my life fancying the new and fresh, from annual iPhone upgrades to fancy shoes, but some years ago, I realized the value of thrift stores. It was then that my interest in the hand-me-down, the vintage and the antique began as just that — an interest. But recently, it’s evolved into something more impactful. Shopping for the old (and the like-new) is not only economically sensible, but environmentally so. Why pay the full price for something because it comes directly from the manufacturer, who will only make another to replace the item you just bought? It isn’t logical when faced with the possibility that our grandchildren might not be guaranteed breathable air and fertile earth.
There are too many instances in this era of consumerism where perfectly usable items are discarded only because they inconvenience someone. The other day, I found a working treadmill given away for free on Craigslist because the owner was tired of using it as a clothing rack. Similarly, I came across another person who gifted me a perfectly functional record player from the 1960s because he was moving away. Goodwill, too, has plenty of items with just as much diversity, and its everyday sale on clothes and 10 percent discount for students on Saturdays is only more of an incentive to explore your options.
The importance of giving these products a second life stems from recycling’s limitations, as many of these items can only end up in a dump when they are no longer wanted. This is especially becoming a problem for electronics, now known as “e-waste,” which is overproduced for a population that overconsumes. There are plenty of discounted electronics to be found across Broome County if you need a speaker or TV. Regardless of whether it’s made of circuit boards or cloth, you can always avoid unnecessary waste by selling or donating what would otherwise be discarded. There are local repositories for clothes all throughout the Binghamton area, and Goodwill is always welcoming new additions to its selection.
To conclude, I would like to acknowledge a statistic that only serves to anger me (and hopefully, you too). About 71 percent of planet Earth’s greenhouse gas emissions come from just 100 companies, not consumers. So as consumers, we may think, why change our behaviors? Well, while it’s imperative that we address these contributors to climate change, successful movement first begins in the home. The easiest changes start small: What could be better than beginning with more sustainable habits? I then implore you to keep the statistic above in mind whenever you’re shopping for something new, and ask yourself, “Where is this going to end up?”
Evan Moravansky is a junior majoring in English.