The WEF states that sustainability means not compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Can you think of any specific examples when a specific country made a decision that did not support this? What were the gains and sacrifices involved with not promoting sustainable practices?
Sustainability can be discussed as a high level of balance in solving the current environmental, social, and economic problems with references to the role of governance. Today the governments of the definite countries in North Africa are inclined not to follow the principles of sustainability with their intentions to achieve rapid economic growth by any means. In Egypt, the rapid urbanization, the development of industries, and not regular meeting the environmental requirements are affected by the necessity to gain direct economic benefits and shift the country to the new level.
Nevertheless, the overuse of the natural resources which is typical for the country and caused by the lack of the necessary supplies and the incorrect usage of these resources result in negative effects for the environment and, in combination with the aroused social problems, provokes the emergence of the problematic issues associated with the population’s welfare, employment, and health.
What do you think it would take for you to actively seek out sustainable products and services exclusively? Similarly, what types of programs, incentives, or policies would influence consumers, in general, to make the switch to only using sustainable goods and services?
To be sure that the item is worth buying, it is necessary to pay attention to the realization of the combination of such aspects as the quality of the item, its reasonable cost, and sustainability. In this case, sustainability can mean the production of the item according to the environmental protection requirements and its possible further successful recycling or utilization. Thus, the choice of sustainable products or eco-products can be considered as a contribution to the global policy of preserving natural resources and environmental protection.
Moreover, sustainable products can be discussed as more beneficial not only for social needs but also as more useful for people’s health. However, it is important not to force the public to seek out sustainable products, but to provide the necessary information about their usefulness as a means of the program and policy’s realization. It is necessary to focus on all the benefits and advantages of sustainable products such as the saving of energy and other possible resources.
The WEF cites survey data reflecting 86% of participants felt transparency in production for goods they were purchasing was important or very important to their decision. Given such a high response, do you feel the current economy is reflective of this survey response in consumer choices of goods and services? Please explain why or why not.
It is possible to state that those consumers who are interested in purchasing sustainable products or eco-products can also be interested in the peculiarities of the production of these goods which should address definite requirements of sustainability. Nevertheless, today the percentage of those people who choose mostly sustainable products with focusing on the details of their production is rather low in comparison with the amount of those people who prefer to satisfy their needs without references to the problem of different aspects of sustainability.
There is no developed and widely spread tendency to pay attention to the transparency in the production of the goods that is why the number which is presented in the survey can reflect the consumers’ intentions provided in their answers, but not the real situation in the market.