By: Eiman N.
Photo from: Looka
The public health and economic crisis of the last year has caused a rise in awareness around small businesses which are sustainable and ethical. With online shopping becoming more accessible, the younger generation is finding and promoting these small businesses as shopping alternatives for large corporations that contribute to mass pollution and environmental destruction. Many have even been inspired to start their sustainable ventures, such as DePaul University freshman Victoria Smolen.
After becoming a student at DePaul, Smolen took a class called GEO 200 -- sustainable urban development, where she gained a variety of insight on different environmental issues relating to urban development, as well as environmental racism. For her birthday, then, she wanted to set up donations to an environmental organization but realized it would end up being a one-time thing.
Smolen then set out to create something that could be permanent and support a variety of different organizations. She settled on her brand of tote bags -- not only to be green but to have more options to be green. Her brand, called Totes Green Co., focuses on supporting different environmental organizations or charities every month by donating 10% of the profits. Smolen focuses on the city of Chicago, where she was born and currently resides, by choosing to support local environmental organizations based in Chicago or national organizations with a branch in the city. Smolen ordered her supplies, choosing a branding, logo, and a name that was cohesive and easy to find -- and available on both Instagram, her social media promoting platform, and Etsy, her business shop -- settling on Totes Green Co. After the assembly, she started building her brand, setting up the Etsy shop. Smolen assumed it would be difficult, but remarked that there were a multitude of online resources to guide her through the process.
Smolen noted that although the basics of business aren’t learned in school, it should not prevent young entrepreneurs from pursuing their passions out of fear as there are so many online resources and guides for every step of the way.
Smolen believes that a big part of her business is transparency.
“I think business transparency is a key part of environmentalism,” Smolen stated. “Not only does it allow a buyer to feel like they’re making an eco-conscious decision, but it also holds the business accountable in making sure that they’re being green as possible.”
She goes on to explain how businesses want solid self-promotions, which can’t happen when they’re giving less than half of the effort in terms of their progressive plans.
“A business being honest about their green contributions, changes, and overall plan (such as providing 5, 10, 15-year goals) is best for the consumer and the seller in terms of environmentalism.”
Many big businesses have not set targets to combat their direct contribution to climate change, while others have weak goals.
Large corporations hold a large responsibility for the state of the environment now, as Smolen mentioned they have created -- and stuck with -- oil and gas-dependent means of production, producing large quantities of toxic chemicals. Since human-driven climate change was officially proven and recognized, there have only been a total of 100 energy companies responsible for 71% of all industrial emissions. Despite the greener methods that have risen to production, these companies have still not made the investments to be more environmentally conscious.
“While it is understandable that some companies do not have the financial ability to switch their means of production, there are small, gradual steps that can be taken,” Smolen stated, using the switch from cardboard to recyclable material and digital invoices as two of many examples.
She added that many are looking to blame the consumers instead of the company -- a mindset that must be shifted.
“It is not the person who uses a single plastic straw that is killing the environment, but rather the methane-producing factory that produces millions per day.”
“If people want others to be more sustainable, they need to provide small businesses with the resources to comfortably operate,” Smolen said so that from a financial standpoint, their prices can remain average yet still competitive “in a market in which mass-produced shirts are $3 a piece.”
This is where Etsy does well, Smolen said, for both sellers and consumers.
“Etsy allows people from all over the globe to market their goods to anyone else across the globe, removing the barrier of accessibility via geographic location,” Smolen said. “Sites like Etsy also have low starting costs for businesses, and offer discounted shipping labels, so that sellers can start a business at a reasonable price and not have to spike initial prices to recuperate operating costs.”
Despite this, Etsy only works for businesses of a certain size, and at some point, they will want (and need) to develop their system, website, shop, and operations for which they will need resources and incentives to expand.
“If a business can expand at a low enough cost that their goods are affordable, many individuals, especially the younger generation, will opt for a unique handmade find over a mass-market product that is more cheaply made,” Smolen stated.
This is why the role of small businesses is so important in reversing the current state of the environment. Smolen listed various ways in which they directly contribute to the betterment of the environment, including, but not limited to, being closer to a consumer’s home, therefore preventing shipping, supporting local industries, producing unique and creative products, and their newfound accessibility through websites like Etsy.
“As they grow in numbers, they have the power to draw attention away from mass-produced goods and towards sustainable production instead,” Smolen said.
The crucial role of small businesses in saving the environment is directly tied to young entrepreneurship, as young entrepreneurs like Smolen are taking the initiative to start these businesses and putting pressure on their peers and those around them to support them. Also, technology and social media have allowed the younger generation to have a lot of resources at their disposal. Activists like Greta Thunberg, Isra Hirsi, and Mari Copeny are examples of those taking the initiatives and demanding or creating change.
In Thunberg’s words, “I have learned you are never too small to make a difference.”
Discussion Questions:
Do you think the younger generation cares more for environmental issues than their older counterparts? Why or why not?
How can young entrepreneurship be a key step in solving the climate crisis?
Is it possible for large corporations to go completely green?