Design Review: The Story of Stuff

The Story of Stuff explores consumerism and the consequences it is having on our lives, our planet and our future. It looks at the production cycle of products that are:

Extraction - Production - Distribution - Consumption - Disposal

I think consumerism is quite a scary thing because we just don’t know where it is going to end? The statistics on the depletion of our natural resources that are revealed in the Story of Stuff are just scary. To me its seems that in the last 60 years of life on our planet we have set the wheels in motion to use up and consume every thing it has to offer, without giving a second thought to the consequences and all in the name of profit.

The corporations making all this profit are able to do so because of ‘externalised costs’. This is where the real costs of making something aren’t captured in the selling price but are borne by the poorer countries that provide the recourses and labour to produce these items. It is immoral to expect a lesser-developed country to bear the costs of depletion of their natural resources, irreversible damage to the land and cheap labour. This economic system set up and maintained by the west means that we enjoy the advantages of colonisation, whilst these third world countries experience all the disadvantages keeping them in a state of under development. It is unethical for corporations to conduct their business in this way. The Story of Stuff does state that we have become ‘Consumers first and foremost’, so it is also unethical for us to support these corporations.

The Story of Stuff also looks at the number of untested toxins in everyday use which is also alarming. I am sure there are other options to these toxins that are not harmful but are probably more expensive.

The rate that we consume products is extraordinary, 99% of products are not in use 6 months after they have been purchased, ‘Perceived Obsolescence’. I figure this is because of 3 reasons:

1.     Advertising

2.     Product up-grading

3.     Product durability

Someone in advertising once told me that the whole purpose of advertising is to make you feel that what you currently own is not good enough and that you need something new. Again this all appears to be happening without any regard for the consequences.

The Story of Stuff reveals the ugly nature of consumer products and as an aspiring Industrial Designer; I believe that we all need to be aware these consequences in the design, manufacture and purchasing of consumer products.