In today’s society a huge emphasis is placed on the individual effort and everyone doing their part to “go green” and help the environment. Although this is nice, in reality many people do not follow this advice and our nation is continuously faced with the same problem as the effects continue to get worse. It is extremely important for corporations and companies to adopt environmentally friendly packaging as it sets the example for consumers as long as making a huge impact on the environment. Companies have a nature of competitiveness which is seen in the term “keeping up with the Jones’s”. What I mean by this is once one company switches to environmentally friendly packaging, others will then start to follow in their footsteps so they can keep up with their competition. Stores will start getting lots of coverage on their new green approach along with lots of positive feedback from consumers, because instead of focusing on money they are taking steps to benefit the environment and the future of the world. Other companies will want a piece of this as well which is when they will start to follow suit and join the green team. In addition to this, consumers and the public will see these changes and start to realize the severity and importance of taking steps to help the environment. Most people see companies as money hungry and only care about their business, so to see them take steps not about money but about the environment, will cause consumers to realize that what is happening is serious and possibly make them also be conscious of how they can help the environment as well.
Instead of using materials like plastic packaging that is detrimental to the environment, adopting greener ideas will have a lot of positive impacts. The use of recycled materials reduces the consumption of resources, reducing the carbon footprint, they are easily disposable, biodegradable, and can even help save money because the use of industrial shredders can make it easier to get rid of waste packaging. Using plastic packaging contains methods and materials that have been linked to global warming and other environmental issues. In addition to this, these petrochemical products usually lead to litter in public spaces and health problems when used with food. The entire process uses a lot of resources like water, energy, minerals, petroleum, etc. to produce these products. Thus manufacturing usually creates air emissions such as green house gasses, heavy metals, and waste/toxins containing toxic contaminants. All of this is unhealthy and not safe for humans to be taking in, it is only logical to stop these practices. It may seem dramatic but in the grand scheme of things the more people who are alive and safe, the more people who can buy these packaged products in the future. This can be avoided by the adoption of green packaging by corporations, not only does it help the company, but the environment as well.
As I have gotten older I have realized that I have a responsibility to do what I can to help the environment, not just for me but for future generations and my children to have a safe planet to live on. This is what everyone wants at the end of the day. Corporations and companies are just like people, it was founded at some point and passed down through generations adapting to the times in order to survive and ensure there is still a company in the future. Well now the thing that needs to be adapted is green packaging and resources to ensure the environment is safe for the future generations. Whether they like it or not companies will have no one to sell to or to make products for if the Earth is inhabitable, and no one wants that. Companies love money, and if they want to continue to make money 100 years from now, the actions they take today will determine their future.
Essay by: Cameron Minor
Arizona State University