Counterpoints between consumerism and the ecological proposal: a philosophical reflection in the 21st century

Abstract

Going shopping, as well as exchanging money for necessary or unnecessary products, is a current topic in the market, through consumption, which has become a daily and even routine activity for millions of people on the planet. Philosophizing about consumption can unfold in different ways, for example, by questioning the very act of consumption, "consuming." What is consumption? It's something like developing an ontological problematization about the "Being" of consumption itself. Recognizing the environment, non-human or even inanimate living species, is, from this perspective, a recognition of the "we," which encompasses humans, plants, animals, and their ecosystems (forests, jungles, deserts, and even the rocks that make up mountains and ranges). Through a less selfish awareness that considers the environment and its diversity and that raises awareness of the networks of interdependence that exist in our world, it allows us to identify the dangers that practices such as conspicuous, compulsive, and unnecessary consumption cause.