Responsible Consumption

Responsible consumption is a new concept that is just starting to emerge within theoretical and policy-relevant discussions, as well as within wider popular debates, about how to rethink consumer behavior in the light of key events in the early twenty-first century: most notably, the global recession of 2009 and global climate change. As such, it is a little early to offer any final word on what this concept will ultimately come to signify in analyses of consumer culture. That said, it warrants brief consideration here as it is slowly starting to gather currency and would seem to reveal a growing sense of disillusionment with so-called green, or ethical, consumption.

Simply put, responsible consumption represents a belief that there is an urgent need to perceive of our ...