Production and consumption

Not too long ago, we were satisfied with quenching[kwen-ching(allay,blow out,बुझाना)] our thirst when water was available. So we waited till we got to a water source. Now, we need to carry plastic bottles with water so that the minute we feel thirsty, we can quench it. (And we can assuage[u'sweyj(quenching)] our guilt about the plastic bottle by seeking out a ‘recycle’ container in which to dispose it.)

Quick replies to email and instant messaging is the order of the day. WhatsApp and Twitter tell everybody about everything tout de suite[tawt de sweet(immediately,तुरंत)].

Consumer demand has shrunk time and space. My local supermarket stocks the same fruits and vegetables year round! Seasonality has lost its meaning and they are shipped in from across the world so our consumption desires (not needs) are satisfied.

Gandhiji wanted production and consumption to be local. His dream village was self-governing and self-sufficient for its vital needs (food and clothing).

Teresa Brennan, in her book Globalization and Its Terrors (2003), makes her position on globalisation clear right in the title! She argues that shrinking space and time facilitated by globalisation also hurts the west, not just the poorer countries since it does allow the environment time to ‘regenerate.’ Speeding up production and the need for scale has resulted in searching further and further for resources allowing less time to replenish[ri'ple-nish(fill again,फिर से भरना)] both natural resources as well as labour power. It increases stress, and stretches the working day seen from the constant attention to email.

Clearly, the US model of standard of living is unenviable[ún'en-vee-u-bu(difficult,मुश्किल)] to reproduce around the world without causing serious damage to the environment. The US levels of waste and consumption also make it less desirable. Brennan would like to shift the responsibility for the environment to the producers by keeping it local (or at least regional).

The idea is not entirely far-fetched[faa'fecht(imaginative,काल्पनिक)]. Scale is not a must for efficiency. The concept of mass customisation that the Japanese made real not just with technology but with their management practices is an example that is now mainstream. Modi’s push for villages to be power-independent through solar energy is another example.

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