The Story of ‘The Story of Stuff’

Whenever you see a good bargain, your first emotion is probably one of elation. Saving money is awesome, right? Maybe not.

Unfortunately, the cheap prices on mass-produced goods like electronics come at a huge cost to the environment, according to a project called The Story of Stuff. TSOS includes several videos and a book, the latter of which hit stores yesterday.

The trouble with consumerism, according to the project, all comes down to externalized costs. This is an economic term for the production costs that corporations don’t pay – for example, a manufacturer might pay workers in China for producing the plastic for a cheap radio (both materials and labor), but it won’t cover other costs, particularly not for the environmental impact caused during production.

In a forthcoming study, the UN estimated that the world’s top 3,000 manufacturers have caused $2.2 trillion of environmental damage.

For more info on The Story of Stuff, check out www.TheStoryofStuff.org.