Ethical consumerism

This page contains my views on consumer activism. Included is a list of providers, manufacturers, or brands alongside a suggestion for action. This page is not telling you what to do, it is explaning what I believe we should do.

What is ethical consumerism?

Some definitions:

Ethical consumerism is a type of consumer activism based on the concept of dollar voting. People practice it by buying ethically made products that support small-scale manufacturers or local artisans and protect animals and the environment, while boycotting products that exploit children as workers, are tested on animals, or damage the environment.

Dollar voting is an analogy that refers to the theoretical impact of consumer choice on producers’ actions (…) Products that consumers buy will tend to be produced in the future. Products that do not sell as well as expected will receive fewer productive resources in the future. According to this analogy, consumers vote for “winners” and “losers” with their purchases.

In an ideal world, all products and services are created in a fair way, causing no harm to others nor the environment. We know that this is very far from being true.

List of providers

Below is a list of providers with a suggestion for action. Legend for the suggested actions:

• 💚 Favor: choose this provider unless not available, as it’s the best option.
• 👍 Prefer: choose this provider if possible, as it’s a good option.
• ⬛ Neutral: no strong reasons for/against, or I don’t yet know - use your own judgement.
• 👎 Avoid: choose other providers if possible, as it’s not a good option.
• 🚫 Boycott: choose other providers or consider not buying at all.

Boycott is a nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, service, or company to try to compel the target to alter an objectionable behavior.

Name	Category	Location	What to do?	Why?
Amazon	Technology	US	🚫 Boycott	Tax avoidance, denial of worker rights, no respect for its customers, and shady market practices.