Everyone has wants and needs, and it's usually hard to balance the two. Needs things and items that you usually need, while wants are just something that you desire. And a problem with wants is that usually it gets to a point where you have too many things that you want and you don't end up using them just because you wanted it at the moment which causes resources to used wastefully.

The difference between needs and wants is simple, but difficult to make a choice between them. Needs are things you must have to live. This includes things like food and water. Wants are things you just really want, like a new phone or toy. A significant issue is that wanting too much stuff can cause an overconsumption of materials. Making all those extra items uses up lots of Earth's materials, and it wastes energy. Also, it creates pollution. If everyone focused more on just meeting their basic needs instead of always getting the new and trendy items, we would stop hurting the environment so much and save natural resources.

With social media like TikTok and Instagram being so prevalent today, there's a lot of content centered around the trendiest clothes to buy. Especially now with resources like TikTok Shop and SHEIN, poorly made "trendy" clothes aren't only being pushed onto you from every site, they're also accessible with a few clicks. If you see a post about a shirt that you just need, you might not even have to leave the app to buy it. It's almost too good to be true. But what happens after a few months? The clothes you just bought aren't just falling out of style, they're falling apart. Influencers sometimes make it seem like the trendy, fast-fashion apparel they're promoting is a necessity, but the truth is, the clothes you have now work just fine. Not participating in fast fashion helps slow the masses of thrown-away clothes that litter every landfill. It also means you're not funding the unethical work practices of most of the companies that sell them. So the next time you see a shirt on the internet you're convinced you can't live without, remember, the shirt you have on right now is just as good.

This post effectively illustrates the relationship between social media consumption and unsustainable consumer behavior in the fashion industry. The accessibility of fast-fashion platforms like TikTok Shop and SHEIN creates a cyclical pattern of overconsumption and waste. When garments deteriorate rapidly due to poor manufacturing standards, they contribute significantly to landfill accumulation. Additionally, the carbon emissions generated from manufacturing, shipping, and disposing of these low-quality items represent a substantial environmental cost. By maintaining existing clothing items rather than participating in trend-driven purchasing, individuals can reduce their personal carbon footprint while simultaneously decreasing demand for unethical production practices. The data supports that extending the lifespan of existing garments through conscious consumption is one of the most effective strategies for reducing fashion-related carbon emissions and textile waste in landfills.

Our items and belongings that we have, clothes, technology and such should be kept if it is able to be used. For example, the clothes that I have are good enough and I do not need or want to buy new ones. There is no need to buy new clothes if the ones that I have are already good, and it would just be a waste of money and it would damage the climate. The fashion industry already makes up 8-10% of the total global carbon emissions, and me buying new clothes would make it go up even more.

you're totally right about this, the fashion industry is insane for carbon emissions. i never realized it was like 8-10% of global emissions until i started researching. honestly keeping the clothes you have is way smarter than constantly buying new stuff. plus most new clothes are fast fashion that fall apart anyway so you end up replacing them more often. if everyone just wore what they already had and took care of it, the fashion industry's carbon footprint would drop so much. it's crazy how simple the solution is but nobody does it.

According to Carbonliteracy.com the fashion industry is the second largest contributor to pollution (about 10% of global pollution). We in this generation spend around 5-6 hours a day on our phones, and more “doom scrolling” through TikTok, this is where companies thrive off of by paying your favorite influencers to promote their products, making them 2x as desirable just for them to lose “hype” after a few months; examples being clothes, water bottles, make up, etc. . All of these products that are being mass produced for every month long trends go to waste, as of 2019 H&M was known for having over 4.2 billion dollars worth of unsold clothing; according to Carbonliteracy.com 1.2 billion tonnes of carbon emissions come from the fashion industry alone.

Exactly, companies make fast fashion items which get popular for a certain amount of time only to go to waste when it goes out of trend.

This is smart to notice, because people often buy things that are trendy and stop wearing them or throw them out when they are not in style/trend anymore.

What is a Need?
A need is something essential for survival or maintaining a healthy life. Without it, a person's physical health would be significantly harmed or compromised. Example: food, water, and shelter.
What is a Want?
A want is something that is desired but not essential for survival or basic well-being. Wants are things that improve the quality of life, provide entertainment. Example: new phone, new car, and LEGOs.

I completely agree,Understanding the difference between wanting something and needing something could make all the difference in helping the environment because say you just want to buy (EX;LEGOs) that is not a need, and you're using CO2 to rather get to the store to buy LEGOs or paying someone to deliver those LEGOs to your house. But needing to go buy groceries for your home to feed your family is different and I think knowing the difference could be a big help to the earth.

Social media constantly advertises new products and clothes which encourages users to purchase more than what they need. The more people consume, the more they throw away. The fashion industry uses 93 billion cubic meters of water every year. Water is important to wildlife and humans. We use it to survive. Over 400 million tons of plastic are produced each year, and only 9% is ever recycled. The rest ends up in landfills. All the products that we buy are created in factories that produces lots of greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases are the main causes of climate change and rising temperatures.
Sources: https://greenly.earth/en-gb/blog/ecolog … a23ede52a0

To be honest, I don't think it's worth it to get new things just because they're in style. For example, a friend of mine always purchased the newest iPhone model, even when his previous model was working flawlessly. After purchasing it, he continued to brag to everyone. Like many others, I am readily swayed by others to purchase items. I usually ask myself, "Do I really need it?" before making a purchase. In the majority of cases, the answer is no. I believe that the issue with overconsumption in today's society is that people find it difficult to distinguish between needs and wants while making purchases. I frequently see videos on social media of people—usually Americans, in my case—doing a "restock my fridge with me" and then filling the refrigerator full of tiny packaged products. These little packaging materials generate a lot of garbage. I've seen people purchase milk in tiny packaging simply because it had a nice cow sticker on it. Of course, that isn't true for everyone. According to what I've heard, Black Friday also leads to a lot of overconsumption because consumers typically purchase unnecessary items just because they're on sale.

Yes, I totally agree. While it may seem like getting the newest gadgets is appealing, it is a waste of resources when you already have perfectly working ones. In these kinds of cases, having the latest technology is definitely a want. You need to ask yourself, "Is this really going to let me complete my goal that is impossible without this? Is this really going to change my life in such an influential way that I will die without it?" However, sometimes medical devices require the newest technology in order to prolong lives. In these kinds of cases, having the latest technology is most likely a need. This is the difference between want and need, whether it will affect an individual's survival or a task's successful completion.

Hi Paula, I totally agree because getting the new iPhone is fun and the new features are cool but it wastes money and the environment. Something peple do to minimize costs is to trade in their phone every 2-3 years to be able to get the new phone for free with a Black Friday and not have their phones stop working and they don’t have enough money to get a new one. Something I do is to not buy things i need until Black Friday so I get what I need and I might forget the unnecessary things I wanted.

Although this is a true statement, the products are being mass-produced. The need is usually higher than the want. The example you gave about the new iPhone and how your friend buys it every year because he wants it isn't a valid example for everyone. Not just the iPhone, but in general, most sought-after items such as the iPhone are mass-produced. If these items' demand goes down, the product will go to waste. So the supply is created per the demand. So if an item is mass-produced just because one individual does not purchase it, only one item that the individual would have bought goes to waste. In short, one person restricting their wants won’t affect the overall climate.

I agree because we shouldn't be buying such products unless we truly need them, if they are being mass produced then we as a population could lower our purchasing rate for iPhone which would knock some sense into the company iPhone to lower their production rate due to less sales. I agree and disagree with Paula because Black Friday is basically just a day where the stores are selling out a bunch of stuff they don't need or have had for a long time and want to somehow get it out from their stores so they can have space for newer better items which have a much higher demand. But then people do purchase more than they need, like somebody could have a perfect set of kitchenware but they might buy new ones because its cheaper, but we also need to consider the fact that during Black Friday, most people buy stuff to gift to other people, because its a smart thing to stock up on items so you don't have to buy gifts when its more expensive. Something I would too personally.

Android better, battery life very excellent. big battery mean less charges mean less pollution mean better earth mean happy us.

I also agree, I get huge buyers remorse when i'm about to buy something. This would be better for me as I and many other people would not have to feel bad when they're buying something.

I notice that the internet is a  huge factor to the reason why people are such impulsive shoppers online, and thus leading many to purchase things that they don’t need at all.  Social media, such as tiktok, instagram  and other apps promotes new random gadget or new clothes to users that'll be forgotten about in a few weeks max. A study done by Earth Institute’s Research Program says that, "And in fact, across its life cycle, the average product results in carbon emissions of 6.3 times its own weight",not only meaning that these products are simply useless but that it causes harm to the environment. Not to  mention that the quality of these items promoted on these apps  are extremely cheap  and short-lasting  so much so that they really aren't worth your money.

There are some ways to reduce your carbon footprint for wants or needs like things that include, food, home energy, water, transportation, shopping, waste, etc. For food, eat more plant-based meals and reduce consumption of meat. Choose local produce to cut down for transportation emissions. For home energy lower your thermostat and also use less heating and cooling, Use energy efficient appliances and switch to LED light bulbs. For water, Save water by taking shorter showers and turning off the water while brushing your teeth. For transportation, try prioritizing public transportation, walking, or biking. Limit air travel and choose direct flights when you are able to. for shopping this is very important, reduce your overall consumption by buying less, especially new expensive items. There are multiple ways to reduce your carbon footprint for wants or needs.

Many people make their carbon footprint, and of all of their subjects, the transportation comes out to be the largest portion of all. This is because of many people who go on vacation and use things like airplanes and other large vehicles that burn fossil fuels. Overall, causing things like pollution and other harmful things to the Earth.

A major interference to the rapidly increasing CO² levels in our atmosphere is that we can't choose between our wants and needs. I have questioned multiple people, and some said things like, "I NEED my phone" and "my PlayStation is necessary," which is just not true. Learning to separate your wants and needs is great, as for example, having a healthy meal 2 or 3 times a day is a NEED, as getting that new video game that just came out is a WANT. Learning to choose between wants and needs is a very important skill that everyone should learn, and it would also help preserve our planet for the thousands of years to come.