opinion — All Articles — In Our Nature

Consumerism and Degrowth

First, however, let’s talk more about degrowth itself. Ultimately, degrowth serves as an antithesis to the capitalist system that pursues infinite growth in spite of its ecological and social consequences. It calls for a descaling of production and consumption, enabling societies to live within their ecological means as determined by strong efforts in research and organization as opposed to private interests. Rather than organize societies efforts towards material accumulation and deal with the repercussions later, degrowth focuses on addressing real needs like resource equity.

Capitalism Can’t Save the Environment

In this piece, read about some of the effects of capitalism on the environment, how corporations have harmed the planet, and why capitalism will be unable to stop this cycle of consumerism and environmental degradation.

Environmental Class Recommendations

Northwestern offers a wide range of environmental-related courses. With such a varied and vast course list, it can be hard to determine what environmental classes are the best ones to take. The wide range of factors to consider like workload, professor teaching style, and content make narrowing down the list difficult even with CTECs. I’ll be discussing some characteristics of these classes and my personal experiences with them.

Why Cancel Culture is Counterproductive to the Online Sustainability Movement

Cancel culture, which once started as a movement of accountability, has overgrown into a mangled mess of self-censorship, perfectionism, and fear of speaking out. Due to this dynamic, I’ve personally noticed an increase in inauthentic online environmental activism in hopes of self-preservation, of being “on the right side,” even if they don’t know or really care about what they're posting.

My Issues With “Internet Vegans”

“Internet vegans”, social media influencers who create platforms promoting their lifestyle choices, argue that eating any animal products is immoral, and only by going vegan can someone truly be environmentally conscious. While many vegans do not share these views, the rhetoric of these extreme vegans who argue that non-vegans are immoral is extremely problematic for a wide range of reasons. Hannah Dembosky shares her opinion.

All Other Stories, ECOpinionHannah DemboskyApril 22, 2021opinion, vegan, veganism, ecopinion

Thoughts On Dandelions

Every year, homeowners spend countless hours of their spring and summer de-weeding their yards, attempting to get rid of those little yellow flowers that children make a wish on. But why are dandelions so despised? Danielle Johnson shares her opinion.

All Other Stories, ECOpinionDanielle JohnsonJune 7, 2020opinion, dandelions, weeds, plants