Connor Pattison
Professor Trachtenberg
Phil 3293
March 30, 15
Voluntary Simplicity Movement
According to Mark Whitehead the author of Environmental Transformations he
defines the Anthropocene as a geological Epoch that the Earth is currently in, in which the
Earth is greatly effected by human actions. Now these geological epochs stretch for many
thousands of years so the start of the Anthropocene causes some debate. A place in time
that one should consider is the industrial revolution because it gave humans the ability to
mass-produce like never before. The industrial revolution is important to look at because
through it and the great acceleration it sparks the true problem with the Anthropocene,
which are our consumerism habits. With consumerism taking such a big part in American
life Whitehead has also offered the Voluntary Simplicity Movement or VSM. In Whitehead’s
eyes the VSM idea is that “people should free their lives up from the many possessions that
they have accumulated”(ET, 148). The VSM ideal has come about to get people away from
the mindset of “everything you own owns you”. In this paper I will talk about how the great
acceleration and how it sparked consumerism habits in America. Next I will talk about the
problems our overconsumption has caused and how we can change that by becoming
responsible consumers.
In the same chapter of Mark Whitehead’s book Environmental Transformations in
which he talks about VSM he also talks about how the great acceleration helped spark the
voluntary simplicity movement. The great acceleration is referred to as the time period
post WWII and the industrial age in which “human transformation of the environment
became truly global in scale”(ET, 144). The implications of this have lead to raising
numbers in carbon dioxide, inorganic nitrogen and also atmospheric sulphur dioxide
concentrations. The great acceleration was amazing for the American economy but the
long-term effects of it has put the Earth into some real trouble. The consumerist greed that
started with the great acceleration has sent America into a place where consumption is the
name of the game. However after years of overconsumptions by Americans we are now
starting to face real problems such as how to cut back and find a balance between need and
want. Also we are facing troubles with how to responsibly dispose of our waste.
In an article I found from The Guardian the author Celia Cole takes lessons shared to
her by Anna Leopard a green activist who talks about how over consumption in America is
a true problem not only for the earth but for our society. Anna talks about how
consumption is a good thing and people should buy to their needs and that there is no
problem with that. However Anna does have a problem with consumerism “[It] is always
bad, adding little to our wellbeing as well as being disastrous for the planet” (Cole).
Leopard goes into talking about how consumerism is just a way for us to fill a void in our
lives and that it really doesn’t bring out any positive aspects. Furthermore she goes into
talking about how consumerism and overconsumption are both ruining the planet with the
access of things being produced and being turned into waste. I think this is an interesting
source to examine because not only does it look into the environmental side of
consumerism but it also examines how people are trapped in it and making their lives
emptier just by simply buying more.
Another article I found that I think is worthy of mention is an article written by
Frontline, in which they examine electronic dumping grounds in Ghana also known as Ewaste. Countries such as Germany, the U.K. and the United States all send “donations” of old
computers and electronics to Ghana, but according to Frontline, less than 50% of the
material that gets sent to Ghana is of actual use. The rest of the electronics are just junk that
no longer works and they get sent to burn fields. In Ghana parts of the economy are based
off sorting through the electronics and for younger men in the country they “burn old foam
on top of computers to melt away the plastic, leaving behind scraps of copper and iron they
can collect to sell. The younger boys use magnets from old speakers to gather up the
smaller pieces left behind at the burn site.”(Frontline). Not only is this not be good for the
health of the young boys doing this but it also has negative effects on the Earths’
atmosphere. It is often hard to think of the negative effects of our overconsumption in
America but in places like Ghana the effects are felt everyday. I think this Frontline article is
worthy of mention because it shows the other side of our consumption in which our waste
can so negatively effect other countries and the Earth.
In conclusion I believe the voluntary simplicity movement is a good thing because it
raises questions about our needs and wants as consumers. The great acceleration was
sparked by the industrial revolution which led to the huge rise of consumerism in America.
Although if we as a society can consume only our needs than we would help the Earth and
potentially live fuller lives. Also if our overconsumption died down we wouldn’t have to
resort to dumping our waste in foreign countries and further polluting the Earth.