The growth of consumerism has led to a ‘throw-away’ culture where people are more concerned with acquiring material possessions than protecting the environment. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

The twentieth century has seen a rapid rise in the consumerism all over the globe, primarily due to the increased access to markets generated by globalisation.

As a result

, there has been a real shift in people’s desire to own and replace their possessions more often. I believe that

this

has had an extremely detrimental effect on how the protection of the

environment

is viewed.

First

of all, the rise of global brands means that more people than ever have access to material wealth. In my opinion, these global brands have become so ubiquitous that they have produced trends and consumer groups that the majority of people would like to belong to.

For example

, many people would like to be in possession of an iPhone and the company which makes

this

product makes sure that it updates its products regularly in order to ensure consumers keep replacing their phones every couple of years.

However

, these days, the fact that the materials required to make these phones require complex processes which damage the

environment

is often lost to on the average consumer.

On the other hand

,

is

Correct your spelling

it

show examples

can be argued that consumerism has created many positive aspects.

For example

, the rise of entrepreneurship, which allows people to start small businesses and gives them more control over their income and

subsequently

over their lives. Having said

this

, I firmly believe that protecting the

environment

should take priority because too much damage to the

environment

will reduce the opportunities for economic growth for everyone. In conclusion, despite some of the perceived benefits, I still believe that consumerism has taken over in people’s consciousness and that the state of the

environment

is suffering

as a result

.