Social media, magazines and shop windows bombard people daily with things to buy, and British consumers
are buying more clothes and
shoes than ever before. Online shopping means it is easy for customers to buy without thinking, while major brands offer such cheap clothes
that they can be treated like disposable items – worn two or three times and then thrown away.
In Britain, the average person spends more than £1,000 on new clothes a year, which is around four per cent of their income. That might not
sound like much, but that figure hides two far more worrying trends for society and for the environment. First, a lot of that consumer spending
is via credit cards. British people currently owe approximately £670 per adult to credit card companies. That's 66 per cent of the average
wardrobe budget. Also, not only are people spending money they don't have, they're using it to buy things they don't need. Britain throws away
300,000 tons of clothing a year, most of which goes into landfill sites.
People might not realise they are part of the disposable clothing problem because they donate their unwanted clothes to charities. But charity
shops can't sell all those unwanted clothes. 'Fast fashion' goes out of fashion as quickly as it came in and is often too poor quality to recycle;
people don't want to buy it second-hand. Huge quantities end up being thrown away, and a lot of clothes that charities can't sell are sent
abroad, causing even more economic and environmental problems.
However, a different trend is springing up in opposition to consumerism – the 'buy nothing' trend. The idea originated in Canada in the early
1990s and then moved to the US, where it became a rejection of the overspending and overconsumption of Black Friday and Cyber Monday
during Thanksgiving weekend. On Buy Nothing Day people organise various types of protests and cut up their credit cards. Throughout the
year, Buy Nothing groups organise the exchange and repair of items they already own.
The trend has now reached influencers on social media who usually share posts of clothing and make-up that they recommend for people to
buy. Some YouTube stars now encourage their viewers not to buy anything at all for periods as long as a year. Two friends in Canada spent a
year working towards buying only food. For the first three months they learned how to live without buying electrical goods, clothes or things for
the house. For the next stage, they gave up services, for example haircuts, eating out at restaurants or buying petrol for their cars. In one
year, they'd saved $55,000.
The changes they made meant two fewer cars on the roads, a reduction in plastic and paper packaging and a positive impact on the
environment from all the energy saved. If everyone followed a similar plan, the results would be impressive. But even if you can't manage a full
year without going shopping, you can participate in the anti-consumerist movement by refusing to buy things you don't need. Buy Nothing
groups send a clear message to companies that people are no longer willing to accept the environmental and human cost of
overconsumption.
Find true or false.
1. People buy clothes because they want to throw them away. 5. Charities can find ways to use clothes even if they are not very
2. The writer thinks it is worrying that people spend money on good quality.
things they do not need. 6. Buy Nothing Day is a protest against credit cards.
3. The amount the average Briton owes on credit cards is one 7. The two friends who did the 'buy nothing' experiment only
third of the amount they spend on clothes each year. bought food for 12 months.
4. Only a very small proportion of unwanted clothes are thrown
away.
8. If everyone followed the Buy Nothing idea, the environment
would benefit.
Social media, magazines and shop windows bombard people daily with things to buy, and British consumers are buying more clothes and
shoes than ever before. Online shopping means it is easy for customers to buy without thinking, while major brands offer such cheap clothes
that they can be treated like disposable items – worn two or three times and then thrown away.
In Britain, the average person spends more than £1,000 on new clothes a year, which is around four per cent of their income. That might not
sound like much, but that figure hides two far more worrying trends for society and for the environment. First, a lot of that consumer spending
is via credit cards. British people currently owe approximately £670 per adult to credit card companies. That's 66 per cent of the average
wardrobe budget. Also, not only are people spending money they don't have, they're using it to buy things they don't need. Britain throws away
300,000 tons of clothing a year, most of which goes into landfill sites.
People might not realise they are part of the disposable clothing problem because they donate their unwanted clothes to charities. But charity
shops can't sell all those unwanted clothes. 'Fast fashion' goes out of fashion as quickly as it came in and is often too poor quality to recycle;
people don't want to buy it second-hand. Huge quantities end up being thrown away, and a lot of clothes that charities can't sell are sent
abroad, causing even more economic and environmental problems.
However, a different trend is springing up in opposition to consumerism – the 'buy nothing' trend. The idea originated in Canada in the early
1990s and then moved to the US, where it became a rejection of the overspending and overconsumption of Black Friday and Cyber Monday
during Thanksgiving weekend. On Buy Nothing Day people organise various types of protests and cut up their credit cards. Throughout the
year, Buy Nothing groups organise the exchange and repair of items they already own.
The trend has now reached influencers on social media who usually share posts of clothing and make-up that they recommend for people to
buy. Some YouTube stars now encourage their viewers not to buy anything at all for periods as long as a year. Two friends in Canada spent a
year working towards buying only food. For the first three months they learned how to live without buying electrical goods, clothes or things for
the house. For the next stage, they gave up services, for example haircuts, eating out at restaurants or buying petrol for their cars. In one
year, they'd saved $55,000.
The changes they made meant two fewer cars on the roads, a reduction in plastic and paper packaging and a positive impact on the
environment from all the energy saved. If everyone followed a similar plan, the results would be impressive. But even if you can't manage a full
year without going shopping, you can participate in the anti-consumerist movement by refusing to buy things you don't need. Buy Nothing
groups send a clear message to companies that people are no longer willing to accept the environmental and human cost of
overconsumption.
Find true or false.
1. People buy clothes because they want to throw them away. 5. Charities can find ways to use clothes even if they are not very
2. The writer thinks it is worrying that people spend money on good quality.
things they do not need. 6. Buy Nothing Day is a protest against credit cards.
3. The amount the average Briton owes on credit cards is one 7. The two friends who did the 'buy nothing' experiment only
third of the amount they spend on clothes each year. bought food for 12 months.
4. Only a very small proportion of unwanted clothes are thrown 8. If everyone followed the Buy Nothing idea, the environment
away. would benefit.
Find someone who... Name
Has traveled to another country
Can play a musical instrument
Likes to read mystery books
Has more than two siblings
Speaks more than one language
Had cereal for breakfast this morning
Loves animals
Can draw very well
Has a birthday in the same month as you
Has watched a movie this week
Can ride a bike
Has visited a museum
Likes to cook
Has read more than five books this year
Plays a team sport
Find someone who... Name
Has traveled to another country
Can play a musical instrument
Likes to read mystery books
Has more than two siblings
Speaks more than one language
Had cereal for breakfast this morning
Loves animals
Can draw very well
Has a birthday in the same month as you
Has watched a movie this week
Can ride a bike
Has visited a museum
Likes to cook
Has read more than five books this year
Plays a team sport
Find someone who... Name
Has traveled to another country
Can play a musical instrument
Likes to read mystery books
Has more than two siblings
Speaks more than one language
Had cereal for breakfast this morning
Loves animals
Can draw very well
Has a birthday in the same month as you
Has watched a movie this week
Can ride a bike
Has visited a museum
Likes to cook
Has read more than five books this year
Plays a team sport