Reduce, reuse and recycle – that is the mantra of those who want to make their footprint smaller. This holds true especially for those of us living in prosperous places, as our financial flexibility comes with above average consumption
Carsten Menke, CFA, head of next generation research at Swiss Wealth Manager, Julius Baer.
Consumption will remain a reward and this reward may ultimately be bigger if we all consume more consciously. Reducing your radius, switching to an electric car or using public transportation are ways that you can actively become a more conscious consumer.
The underlying idea of conscious consumption is a more thoughtful use of our resources. With that in mind, the circular economy should be an integral part of every economy which promotes conscious consumption.
Reduce, reuse and recycle – that is the mantra of those who want to make their footprint smaller. This holds true especially for those of us living in prosperous places, as our financial flexibility comes with above average consumption.
The flipside of that is above average resource use and ultimately above average waste generation. People in prosperous countries generate around 1.5kg of waste on average per capita and day – compared to 0.75 kg in poorer countries. The UAE stand at more than 2kg per capita and day as of last year. This compares to around 3.5kg in 2010, underpinning that the government’s initiatives are working well. This is particularly the case for Dubai, which halved its waste generation per capita during the past ten years.
That said, there is still a lot of room for improvement across the Emirates, especially in terms of waste treatment. More than three quarters of all waste ended up in a landfill last year, which is much more than targeted. As a result of that, the UAE cabinet earlier this year approved the ‘UAE Circular Economy Policy’ with the goal to improve the waste management system and to move towards a more sustainable society.
People in prosperous countries generate around 1.5kg of waste on average per capita and day – compared to 0.75 kg in poorer countries.
A key pillar of the policy is to align the interests of and foster the collaboration between the government, companies and consumers. This includes improvements of the waste management system which should ultimately lead to significantly higher recycling rates.
Taken together with other initiatives such as “Smart Dubai” which strives to transform the economy with the help of technology, the government seems to be setting the right priorities not to just make the city smarter but also more sustainable.
There are not many things as important as mobility. It connects home and work, whilst also bringing our global economy’s supply chains to life. Our mobility needs very much depend on our living conditions, in particular if we live in a city or in the countryside.
In a city we can rely on public transportation while in the countryside we often have no other option than using our cars. The flipside is the negative side effects of mobility such as the emissions and pollution from cars, trucks and planes.
The emergence of the plug-in car offers a calmer and cleaner alternative to conventional cars. Their electric motor is much more efficient than the combustion engine and their smaller carbon footprint is getting even smaller if clean energy is used for charging.
Environmental and societal concerns related to the manufacturing of their batteries are hitting the headlines but need to be put into perspective. In particular, they need to be balanced with comparable issues in oil-producing countries.
The coronavirus fast-forwarded the shift towards plug-in cars thanks to state stimulus measures including dedicated support for cleaner mobility. Add in the growing number of more affordable, long-range and clean electric cars over the next few years, this decade will see the era of electric mobility truly take off.
For now, the UAE is trailing behind in terms of electric vehicle sales but also here the commitment of the government to facilitate the shift is significant.
The coronavirus has also altered how people are getting around in cities. Crowded public transportation has come under scrutiny because of potentially higher infection risks, prompting some to prefer their cars while others discovered cycling. Some of the world’s cities witnessed a bike boom last summer, as commuters were embracing cycling as a cleaner and healthier way of getting around.
How about after the crisis? The share of cyclists is likely to stay higher even though some will switch back to public transportation – as will some of the drivers. Higher up, we had fewer planes in the skies during the crisis and this should remain the case, at least as far as business travel is concerned. For private travel, the desire to see the world and explore new places may be too strong a factor to keep people grounded.
Carsten Menke, CFA, head of next generation research at Swiss Wealth Manager, Julius Baer
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Conscious Consumption: New ways of getting around
Reduce, reuse and recycle – that is the mantra of those who want to make their footprint smaller. This holds true especially for those of us living in prosperous places, as our financial flexibility comes with above average consumption
Carsten Menke, CFA, head of next generation research at Swiss Wealth Manager, Julius Baer.
Consumption will remain a reward and this reward may ultimately be bigger if we all consume more consciously. Reducing your radius, switching to an electric car or using public transportation are ways that you can actively become a more conscious consumer.
The underlying idea of conscious consumption is a more thoughtful use of our resources. With that in mind, the circular economy should be an integral part of every economy which promotes conscious consumption.
Reduce, reuse and recycle – that is the mantra of those who want to make their footprint smaller. This holds true especially for those of us living in prosperous places, as our financial flexibility comes with above average consumption.
The flipside of that is above average resource use and ultimately above average waste generation. People in prosperous countries generate around 1.5kg of waste on average per capita and day – compared to 0.75 kg in poorer countries. The UAE stand at more than 2kg per capita and day as of last year. This compares to around 3.5kg in 2010, underpinning that the government’s initiatives are working well. This is particularly the case for Dubai, which halved its waste generation per capita during the past ten years.
That said, there is still a lot of room for improvement across the Emirates, especially in terms of waste treatment. More than three quarters of all waste ended up in a landfill last year, which is much more than targeted. As a result of that, the UAE cabinet earlier this year approved the ‘UAE Circular Economy Policy’ with the goal to improve the waste management system and to move towards a more sustainable society.
A key pillar of the policy is to align the interests of and foster the collaboration between the government, companies and consumers. This includes improvements of the waste management system which should ultimately lead to significantly higher recycling rates.
Taken together with other initiatives such as “Smart Dubai” which strives to transform the economy with the help of technology, the government seems to be setting the right priorities not to just make the city smarter but also more sustainable.
There are not many things as important as mobility. It connects home and work, whilst also bringing our global economy’s supply chains to life. Our mobility needs very much depend on our living conditions, in particular if we live in a city or in the countryside.
In a city we can rely on public transportation while in the countryside we often have no other option than using our cars. The flipside is the negative side effects of mobility such as the emissions and pollution from cars, trucks and planes.
The emergence of the plug-in car offers a calmer and cleaner alternative to conventional cars. Their electric motor is much more efficient than the combustion engine and their smaller carbon footprint is getting even smaller if clean energy is used for charging.
Environmental and societal concerns related to the manufacturing of their batteries are hitting the headlines but need to be put into perspective. In particular, they need to be balanced with comparable issues in oil-producing countries.
The coronavirus fast-forwarded the shift towards plug-in cars thanks to state stimulus measures including dedicated support for cleaner mobility. Add in the growing number of more affordable, long-range and clean electric cars over the next few years, this decade will see the era of electric mobility truly take off.
For now, the UAE is trailing behind in terms of electric vehicle sales but also here the commitment of the government to facilitate the shift is significant.
The coronavirus has also altered how people are getting around in cities. Crowded public transportation has come under scrutiny because of potentially higher infection risks, prompting some to prefer their cars while others discovered cycling. Some of the world’s cities witnessed a bike boom last summer, as commuters were embracing cycling as a cleaner and healthier way of getting around.
How about after the crisis? The share of cyclists is likely to stay higher even though some will switch back to public transportation – as will some of the drivers. Higher up, we had fewer planes in the skies during the crisis and this should remain the case, at least as far as business travel is concerned. For private travel, the desire to see the world and explore new places may be too strong a factor to keep people grounded.
Carsten Menke, CFA, head of next generation research at Swiss Wealth Manager, Julius Baer
Follow us on
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