How to buy less stuff

Life Kit

NPR

Health & Fitness, Self-improvement, Kids & Family, Education, Business

4.3 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 20 August 2024

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

If you're struggling to save for long-term goals, find yourself lost in a sea of clutter or are concerned about consumerism and climate change, there are ways to curb your shopping habits. This episode, journalist Stacey Vanek Smith talks to writers, influencers and activists in the sustainable fashion industry about how to reign in overconsumption, rethink our power as consumers and challenge ourselves to buy less.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This message comes from NPR sponsor, Subaru,
0:02.8	the largest corporate supporter of Adopt a Classroom.org
0:06.4	by providing teachers with funding for supplies and resources, Subaru,
0:11.1	more than a car company.
0:13.0	You're listening to Life Kit from NPR.
0:17.0	Hey everybody, it's Mariel.
0:21.0	When was the last time you bought something, like a piece of clothing or jewelry or
0:26.2	electronics or makeup or a kitchen gadget or home decor? Was it a month ago? A week ago? An hour ago?
0:35.0	After all, buying things is so easy now.
0:38.0	We can drop a hundred bucks on a deluxe egg cooker while we're waiting for the subway,
0:42.0	or buy sunglasses on flash sale while we're in line for coffee.
0:46.0	Even grab an adorable hot pink cake stand while we're in a Zoom meeting.
0:50.5	Because we definitely will start making cakes if we have a cake stand right?
0:56.3	Of course a lot of this stuff we're buying isn't stuff we need.
1:00.1	Let's go through my purse I have let's count one two three four five six six six lip balms.
1:15.0	That's Alicia Berman.
1:16.3	She's 35 and works in fashion in New York.
1:19.3	Trying new products and new looks
1:20.9	is relevant to her job, but mostly she just loves shopping and over time
1:25.2	she has ended up with a lot of stuff she didn't need. I have two hand creams, two
1:30.3	perfumes, I have sun oh I have a lip liner, I have sunscreen, I have face spray.
1:35.5	Basically, a cuticle cream. I'm like the Mary Poppins of beauty products. All of these products are things Alicia bought at least eight months ago.
	...

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