Challenges of the Knowledge Society (May 2021)
ASPECTS REGARDING THE USE OF MARKETING FOR REDUCING CONSUMPTION
Abstract
Environmental degradation is a reality that we face more and more often. It’s been a while since recycling was proposed as a behavioral solution. Recently, however, the limits of recycling as a solution to environmental problems have begun to emerge. On the other hand, efforts to make products in a sustainable way and to stimulate the consumption of organic products is also not a solution given that we continue to exhibit irresponsible consumption behavior. In addition, despite countless initiatives by various companies and other stakeholders to reduce social and environmental impact, the planet's resources are becoming increasingly poor and the land and water are becoming increasingly polluted due to our unsustainable behavior. Humanity has reached the limits of the planet's sustaining capacity and the waste generated by production is more than the ecosystem can bear. In these circumstances, a new behavioral solution imposes itself, particularly one aimed at encouraging the reduction of resource consumption. It is imperative that consumers take into account the common good, including that of future generations, when exercising their buying and consuming behavior. Although marketing has played for so long a crucial role in stimulating consumption, in the current context characterized by continuous environmental degradation, marketing is playing an increasingly important role in encouraging sustainable behavior aimed, in particular, at reducing consumption. In this context, the following paper reveals some important aspects regarding the necessity of consumption reduction and the ways in which marketing can add its contribution in this direction.
