The constitution of the contemporary subject of consumption – a challenge for environmental education

Abstract

This article identifies the constitution of the contemporary subjects of consumption as an important challenge for the Environment Education. It indicates the emergence of a consumer expertise that, based on statistics facts, teach that particular consumption behaviors are acceptable and others are not. In this study, fragments of Agenda 21, a document produced during an important event held in Brazil in the 1990s with the participation of global leaders and organizations, were used as empirical material. An enunciative analysis was conducted, based on the work of Michel Foucault and his most contemporary readers, as Rose Fischer, Fabiana Amorim, and Marisa Costa. The results indicated the persuasion of the subjects through the discourse of conscious consumption and consequent accountability of consumers for environmental, financial and social risks. This was found to be a feature of control in order to keep the economic system in place functioning rather than a critical position to the consumption model that has caused harm to the environment and society in general.

Keywords

• Educação
• Consumo
• Educação ambiental