With nearly half the world’s population using social media (source), social media should be an effective tool to increase environmental awareness, right? To gain more insight to my question, I conducted a survey and collected a total of 42 responses, most are BES students and other friends/acquaintances. I will be analyzing some of the results in this post!
Environment-related content is prevalent on social media platforms, as seen in Fig. 1, where 78.6% of respondents see environment-related content on social media moderately often to very often. (3-5) This high exposure to environmental concerns via social media suggests that social media could have a significant role in raising environmental awareness.
Fig. 1 (0 being rarely, 5 being very often)
In Fig. 2, 68.7% of respondents feel that they learn more about the environment from social media compared to other forms of media. This could be because social media is more engaging and accessible compared to traditional media like newspapers. The remaining 31.3% may feel that the information on social media is not as reliable as other news outlets, I will be elaborating more on this in my next post.
Fig. 2
Social media is a powerful tool, it not only creates awareness but also inspires change and action. This is evident in Fig. 3 where 88.1% of respondents have been inspired to do more to help the environment.
Fig. 3
As well as in Fig. 4, where many respondents went beyond just understanding the issues and took action by making lifestyle changes and participating in activities like clean-ups.
Fig. 4 (2nd row is also “buy green/eco-friendly products”, 4th row is “make lifestyle changes”)
Many respondents bought green products like reusable straws after seeing them on social media, but is this necessarily a good thing? I wonder if they use these green products frequently or need them in the first place? I feel like the influence of social media has turned owning of green products into a fad, many people end up buying these products just to fit in.
I recall a friend that bought a metal straw after seeing it on social media. She was enthusiastic about using it at the start, but after only 3 weeks, she stopped using it as she found it too troublesome and kept forgetting to bring it out.
Very often, people buy these green products thinking they are helping the environment but they are not aware that most of the time, green products require more energy and resources to manufacture compared to their “non-green” counterparts. (source) These products will only be better for the environment when reused over a certain number of times. A metal straw needs to be reused at least 149 times to offset the environmental impact of producing it. (source)
While it is encouraging that social media has led to more people trying to live more sustainably, we should be conscious consumers and only buy these green products if we really need them and can commit to using them in the long-run.
Stay tuned to my next post to find out more about my survey results!
aliciaongxt September 18, 2020
Hi Si Ying! Interesting post, it’s good to see that so many of your respondents made changes to their lifestyles after being exposed to environmental issues on social media. As someone who has been using my metal straw since 2018 (hopefully it has been more than 149 times), I agree with you that many do not actually keep up with using their ‘green products’; many of my friends have stopped using theirs after 6 months. You evaluated in your post that this might be due to it being too troublesome, do you think that there are other underlying reasons? And I was wondering if educating people on social media about the environment implications of buying green products will be able to deter people from buying them just to fit in or encourage them to continue to use these products in the long run. What do you think?
-Alicia:)
Si Ying September 18, 2020 — Post Author
Hi Alicia!
Thank you for your comment, I’m glad you found my post interesting! I think another reason why people stop using their green products may be because they do not actually need them. For me, I decided not to buy a reusable straw as I rarely buy drinks when I’m outside, so it isn’t necessary for me. It was a good thing that I didn’t buy a metal straw as I received a few for free from events etc., but I have only used 1 of them a few times and I still have 2 unused ones 🙁 Maybe I should try selling/giving the other 2 away. My family and I have an excess of reusable bags that we got for free too (as free gifts from buying other products, events etc.). This could be a problem since Singaporeans enjoy free stuff but I think we should avoid taking them whenever possible, unless we will use them. Another reason may be because they bought the product just because it was trendy/cool and not so much with the intention of reducing their waste. Therefore, when the hype dies down, they stop using the product since there isn’t a motivation (e.g. waste reduction) for them to continue.
I think social media has the power to do both of that. Environmental groups/individuals like us can help people be aware that they need to use some green products over a certain number of times to actually reap the environmental benefits. Businesses marketing their green products on social media should also be responsible and not make false claims, they can also highlight the importance of buying their products only if they need them and can commit to using them in the long term. Knowing that these green products may do more harm than good if they don’t use them frequently, will hopefully encourage consumers to think before buying/feel responsible to continue using them in the long-run.
Cheers,
Si Ying
Jia Wei September 20, 2020
Hi Si Ying,
This is a great post! I like the detailed breakdown of the effects of social media – very meticulous survey conducted! As I mentioned about “Slacktivism” in my post this week, it is heartening to see that most of your respondents did not fall into that trap and did put in the effort to do more after being exposed to environmental concerns on social media.
You bring up a really good fact regarding our “greener” alternatives. Although I knew they cost more resources per unit than the disposable alternatives, having to reuse a metal straw 149 times to offset the cost of producing it was a shocking revelation!
In a way, its ironic that our green products may bring more harm than good to the environment. Most definitely do not realise that with these reusables, they have to remain committed to really bring a positive change. Besides social media, do you think there would there be better ways to promote responsible use of green products?
Si Ying September 20, 2020 — Post Author
Hi Jia Wei,
Thank you for your comment! If that was shocking, be prepared since I just found out how many times we have to reuse a reusable bag made from cotton… MORE THAN 7000 TIMES. :O (source)
I think that individuals like us can educate our friends and family about these green products. For example, if they are deciding to purchase a green product, we can tell them about the importance of being committed to using it and the negative environmental impacts if they do not, to help them make a more informed decision. I should probably try to convince my friend that I wrote about in my post to continue using her metal straw! Maybe advertisements on TV might help too, to reach more people since not everyone is on social media. I also think the way some green businesses market their products has misled a lot of people into thinking all “green” products are better for the environment. Therefore, if green businesses themselves selling these products are responsible in their marketing (indicate how many times they would need to reuse the product, highlight the importance of buying only if they don’t already have a product with similar function etc.), it will definitely promote responsible purchase and use of green products. I don’t think any of these ways are better than social media to promote responsible use of green products, instead I think that all these different ways should be employed together to effectively achieve the aim.
Cheers,
Si Ying
ENV3102 September 21, 2020
Hi Si Ying,
I wanted to let you know some things about this post in the hopes you’ll publicly post this comment so your peers can learn too. First, this is wonderful overall because the basic premise is your primary research, which you present quite well, and then you do very well with independent thought, question asking and critical thinking.
Here are some things I noticed that could be improved (although you’re just in yr 1, so no judgement)…
1) You make an erroneous interpretation (jump to conclusions) in the entire 2nd paragraph. You actually didn’t determine the availability of info, nor did you establish that it was effectively raising awareness (reread your question).
2) Could give some details on who the respondents were.
3) The Qs asked for figs 2 & 3, in a sense are leading Qs. There are probably better ways to obtain this info, without guiding respondents to the ‘correct’ or ‘desirable’ answer.
But these are just things for future – not criticisms.
Finally, Jia Wei’s comment (which is great – as is your reply !)… you could suggest Jia Wei include a hyperlink next time to the post in question – this is just good blogging practice because other readers can then quickly find the post & this raises blog exposure for both of you.
jc
Si Ying September 21, 2020 — Post Author
Hi Dr. Coleman,
Thank you for your feedback and advice, I will take note of them in future! I have edited my post with regards to 1) and 2), I hope it’s better now?
-Si Ying
Joanna Coleman September 29, 2020
Hi Si Ying,
I should’ve been clearer in my feedback (my fault) – I wanted you to leave it alone so if your peers read the comments, then they could see what I meant. I really have to be explicit next time.
But yes, what you changed addresses the issues. Thanks !
jc