The cost of consumption

US overconsumption has consequences around the globe. One of the most shameful, and most hypocritical, things I semi-regularly do is buy fast fashion. I’ll be picking up something at Target and I'll snag a $7 tank top off a rack. I'm uncomfortably aware of the mountains of reporting on how harmful the practice is, but at that moment I'm swayed by the low price tag and the sense of fresh newness that accompanies any clothing purchase. If I needed any more evidence that this behavior should be eradicated, I’d look no further than [Terry Nguyen’s Q&A with fashion journalist Aja Barber](, author of a new book called [Consumed: The Need for Collective Change: Colonialism, Climate Change, and Consumerism](. They get into the immense human, environmental, and geopolitical costs that accompany the cheap garments Americans have become all but addicted to buying (and throwing out), and discuss how, ultimately, we can’t shop our way to a more ethical world. —[Alanna Okun](, deputy editor for The Goods Americans throw away too many clothes. Poorer countries are left with the waste. [a huge pile of clothing waste]( Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images Every week, an [estimated 15 million used garments]( from North America, Europe, and Australia arrive in Ghana’s capital city of Accra. These are the unwanted clothes that well-meaning Westerners have donated to be reused or resold, [bombarding countries such as Ghana with clothing waste](. The small country of 30 million is expected to receive, disseminate, and dispose of billions of garments a year that aren’t theirs to begin with. Items in poor condition that arrive in Accra are immediately thrown into landfills, while the rest are left for resellers to hawk in hopes of turning a profit. But as the quality of clothes has declined thanks to fast fashion, so too have resellers’ ability to earn a living. Accra has “become the dumping ground for textile waste,” the city’s waste manager [told ABC News]( in August. Local water systems have been polluted; landfills have become fuel for catastrophic fires. Yet, no corporation or country has been keen to take responsibility for Ghana’s waste crisis. It exists seemingly out of sight and out of mind. In [Consumed: The Need for Collective Change: Colonialism, Climate Change, and Consumerism](, fashion journalist and activist Aja Barber urges Western fashion companies and sustainability advocates to consider the workers and people of the Global South, who produce our clothes and contend with our waste. [Read the full story >>](  [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Banks don’t want your money right now Everyone’s saving money, but no one is earning much interest. [Read the full story >>]( The great book shortage of 2021, explained Demand for books is way up this year. Supplies are way, way down. [Read the full story >>]( More good stuff to read today - [Should you invest in little bits of paintings, cars, and comedians?]( - [The best $200 I ever spent: A stroller that made me feel welcome in public]( - [24 hours offline with the VIPs of NYC TikTok]( - [Apple picking is a bizarre imitation of hard work]( - [How mental health became a social media minefield](  [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Manage your [email preferences]( or [unsubscribe](param=goods). If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring [contribution](. View our [Privacy Policy]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 11, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2021. All rights reserved.