story of stuff
Story of stuff is a video made by Annie Leonard who has been looking up for 10 years about
where all the stuff we buy comes from and where it goes when we throw it out. She says
that in the planet is set “the materials economy” that is composed by five stages: extraction,
production, distribution, consumption and finally disposal. However, this system is in crisis
because it’s a lineal system and we live on a finite planet, therefore we can’t keep this system
indefinitely. We must be aware of the fact that this system affects societies, economies,
cultures, the environment…
First step is extraction which is the natural resource exploitation. Nevertheless, it’s a big
problem because there is not any limit and we are running out of resources and it’s a worrying
fact that in the last 30 years one third of the planet’s natural resources base have been
consumed. We are using too much more than we should.
Second step is production, where the energy is used to mix toxic chemicals with the natural
resources to get contaminated products. Almost every product we have in our houses has
been made using toxic chemicals and we don’t really know the impact that these products
have in our health. Besides the production in factories, plants, etc… generates tons and tons of
pollution. That is the reason why the enterprises prefer moving their plants of production to
undeveloped countries where nobody complains about it.
Next one is distribution; it consists on moving the products from the plants to the shops,
where they are sold, as fast as they can and keeping low prices. The enterprises’ owners get
low prices externalizing the costs, what it means that the real costs of making stuff aren’t
reflected in the prices. Then we don’t pay a fair price for the stuff we buy. We should add to
the prices the costs of the natural resource, the costs of pollution, the costs of the future of
the worker
where all the stuff we buy comes from and where it goes when we throw it out. She says
that in the planet is set “the materials economy” that is composed by five stages: extraction,
production, distribution, consumption and finally disposal. However, this system is in crisis
because it’s a lineal system and we live on a finite planet, therefore we can’t keep this system
indefinitely. We must be aware of the fact that this system affects societies, economies,
cultures, the environment…
First step is extraction which is the natural resource exploitation. Nevertheless, it’s a big
problem because there is not any limit and we are running out of resources and it’s a worrying
fact that in the last 30 years one third of the planet’s natural resources base have been
consumed. We are using too much more than we should.
Second step is production, where the energy is used to mix toxic chemicals with the natural
resources to get contaminated products. Almost every product we have in our houses has
been made using toxic chemicals and we don’t really know the impact that these products
have in our health. Besides the production in factories, plants, etc… generates tons and tons of
pollution. That is the reason why the enterprises prefer moving their plants of production to
undeveloped countries where nobody complains about it.
Next one is distribution; it consists on moving the products from the plants to the shops,
where they are sold, as fast as they can and keeping low prices. The enterprises’ owners get
low prices externalizing the costs, what it means that the real costs of making stuff aren’t
reflected in the prices. Then we don’t pay a fair price for the stuff we buy. We should add to
the prices the costs of the natural resource, the costs of pollution, the costs of the future of
the worker