Fast Facts
These facts will open your eyes and make you realize the impacts of consumerism
These facts will open your eyes and make you realize the impacts of consumerism
- Americans use 1/3 of the world's paper, 1/4 of the oil, 23% of the coal, 27% of the aluminum, and 19% of the copper. (2)
- 99% of the stuff people in North America buy is trashed within 6 months after purchase. (2) - Americans throw out 200,000 tons of edible food daily. (2) - Americans spend more than four hours a day watching television and are exposed to 52,500 TV ads a year—that’s 15.5 days of advertising annually (4) - In 2005, 5.8 million tons of catalogs and other direct mailings ended up in the U.S. municipal solid waste stream—enough to fill over 450,000 garbage trucks. (4) - 14 billion pounds of garbage are dumped into the ocean every year. Most of it is plastic. (1) - Americans make up an estimated 5% of the world’s population. However, the U.S. produces an estimated 30% of the world’s waste and uses 25% of the world’s resources. (1) |
- The average person living in the United States uses 300 shopping bags worth of raw materials every week - weighing as much as a large luxury car. (3) - We would need the resources of three planets for everyone on Earth to live as people in the United States do. (3) - We are targeted by over 1,500 commercial messages a day, up from 560 per day in the 1960s. Advertisers are increasingly targeting young people. (3) - Companies spend more than $200 billion on advertising in the U.S. each year (and $435 billion worldwide). (3) - Less than $50 billion a year could provide adequate food, clean water, and basic education for the world's poorest. (3) |
Sources Used:
(1) "11 Facts About Pollution." Do Something. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.
(2) "American Consumer Society." American Consumer Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
(3) "Consumption Fast Facts." Consumption. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
(4) "BeyondConsumerism." Avoiding Advertising. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.