Dear Humans, 

Have you ever wondered why eco-friendly products and practices are at the centre of attention? Companies that have unethical environmental practices tend to make it to the headlines and environmental advocates are campaigning more than ever. You may think, who’s the one behind these actions? The truth is, it is the government. Governmentality shows the linkage between governing and mentality, where the government subtly teaches or inculcates certain values in its citizens and the citizens change their mentality and self regulate according to those values (Rutherford, 2007). Green governmentality is how the government works at the distance through multiple techniques, agencies and rationalities to steer the conduct of human behaviour in an environmentally friendly direction (Uggla & Soneryd, 2017). This post and the next will focus on the different scales of green governmentality and how it is seen from beauty products. 

International scale: 

Encouragement of brand innovation is one way that shows green governmentality at an international scale (Utroske, 2020). There are many awards and non-profit initiatives to get beauty brands to go-green and be creative about their sustainability practices. These initiatives would push people all around the world to think about how our cosmetics can be used and produced more sustainably. It also leads the wider public in the ‘right’ direction about going green in the beauty industry. For instance, LOreal created a competition for University students to find ways to eliminate plastic from the beauty industry. But, the underlying reason why these companies are coming up with innovative methods of environmentally friendly practices is due to the drive from the governments. These may include certain laws or policies passed down by the environmental sectors where international agreements are written.

National scale: 

Education is utilised at the national scale to allow consumers to learn more about how beauty products harm the environment. Schools have numerous programmes that teach students the harmful toxins in the environment and the ways to mitigate it. Hence, students will be wary about these products as they know the amount of chemicals released and the harm it causes the environment. Although it may seem like it is just part of the syllabus, students are now more likely to become active agents that will do their part for the environment.

All in all, green governmentality can be observed at numerous stages and scales. Companies have taken action to ensure that their beauty products are environmentally friendly. In my next post, I’ll share more with all of you about how green governmentality is present at community and individual scales.

To know more about LOreal’s take on environmental and social labelling, watch this video!

Carefree vibes,

Mother Nature 

References: 

Rutherford, S. (2007). Green governmentality: Insights and opportunities in the study of nature’s rule. Progress in Human Geography, 31(3), 291-307. doi:10.1177/0309132507077080

Uggla, Y., & Soneryd, L. (2017). Zeleni guvernmentalitet, responsibilizacija i otpor: Kako međunarodni ekološki NVO-i vide budućnost energetske opskrbe i ublažavanja klimatskih promjena. Socijalna Ekologija, 26(3), 87-104. doi:10.17234/socekol.26.3.2

Utroske, D. (2020, February 20). Sustainable Beauty strategies for the 2020s. Retrieved October 28, 2020, from https://www.cosmeticsdesign.com/Article/2020/02/20/Sustainable-Beauty-strategies-for-the-2020s