Consumed: The need for collective change; colonialism, climate change & consumerism

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They target countries with lax labour laws, with poor safety and where they can save as much money as possible to inflate their profit margins.

She asks you to confront the sense of lack you have, the feeling that you are never quite enough and the reasons why you fill the aching void with consumption rather than compassion. In the ‘learning’ first half of the book, she will expose you to the endemic injustices in our consumer industries and the uncomfortable history of the textile industry; one which brokered slavery, racism and today’s wealth inequality. That way, readers can absorb key facts and information more easily, and can refer to whatever primary source she cites. I think that the former statement can be supported with evidence while the latter…not so much (I’m pretty sure that planned obsolescence has only existed for the past 100 years or so.It didn't really teach me anything new, except for Chapter 2 on modern day colonialism which was an interesting take and the landfills Ghana full of our clothes. And if, like me, you were disappointed by this and you're looking for a book around consumption and environmentalism, go read the much more refined No Logo by Naomi Klein. But this book is little more than a strident collection of facts and examples that I was already very familiar with.

She presents the reader with a reality check, pointing that all have a role in the system, but with a good dose of compassion. Instead, the chapter is a hodge-podge of other people's opinions and explanations, meaning the chapter is void of much consistency and linearity. Capitalism requires a certain amount of exploitation to be feasible and it's done this by tapping into existing structures of colonialism.there’s some good information in here but it’s really mixed up in unnecessary digressions that the author makes constantly about her personal experiences and social justice etc. Despite my criticisms, Aja’s work as a plus-sized, Black, sustainable fashion advocate cannot be underestimated, and I hope that her future work continues to positively influence her readers. These corporations spend more on advertising and marketing than they do on the wages of the people that make their exorbitant amount of clothing. She is passionate about racial justice and exposing endemic injustices in our consumer and fashion industries. She will also reveal how we spend our money and whose pockets it goes into and whose it doesn't (clue: the people who do the actual work) and will tell her story of how she came to learn the truth.

Both important, but not clearly defined as separate issues in this book, which from the title kind of sounds like its only about the latter.In the second 'unlearning' half of the book, she will help you to understand the uncomfortable truth behind why you consume the way you do. The discussion on colonialism was also very disorganized and chaotic purely because it didn't use case studies in a very productive way in my opinion. Reading this book was like willfully surrendering my head to someone screaming loudly into my ear for a few hours about topics I already knew. While I wish the content was a bit more organized and backed up with more sources and statistics, I think the format is perfect for someone who is learning about climate change and consumption for the first time. Neither did I read the reviews on “Consumed” prior to reading it, as I wanted to form my own opinion.