Nowadays we need to own something a little newer a little sooner than it is necessary. In other words we consume things that we do not actually “need”. This phenomenon is called planned obsolescence which in basic terms is “a business decision by a company to make consumer products in such a way that they become out-of-date or useless within a known time period.” Since the 1920’s planned obsolescence has played a fundamental role in our life and economy. So far we have not seen or been touched by the negative impacts of planned obsolescence mostly because most of the waste we have created is far from our daily lives and have been dumped thousands of miles away. But as a famous philosopher and critic of the growth society said it best “Anyone who thinks that infinite growth is consistent with a finite planet is either crazy or an economist, and unfortunately we are now all economist.” (Serge Latouche). Luckily enough however, we are slowly acknowledging the fact that we must change our ways and that we need to become more sustainable. Thus is marketing ethical? Is it ethical to advertise and to encourage consumers to consume goods that we know will be obsolete in a short period of time and will and up becoming waste? I believe that there are vast improvements that can be made to make our business practices ethical. They suggest that we create products that are made of organic matter that is safe, chemical free, as well as easy to biodegrade. Also, we are able to create materials that can practically last forever so then why don’t we do so?!

“This world will always be big enough to fulfil everyones needs but will always be too small to satisfy individual greed” (Gandhi)

Check out this great interesting documentary: http://dotsub.com/view/aed3b8b2-1889-4df5-ae63-ad85f5572f27?utm_source=player&utm_medium=embed