Measuring the Ecological Impact of the Wealthy: Excessive Consumption, Ecological Disorganization, Green Crime, and Justice
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2019
Keywords
conspicous consumption, ecological footprint, environmental sociology, consumers and consumption, green criminology
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1177/2329496519847491
Abstract
Ecological disorganization stemming from conspicuous consumption practices is understudied in the social sciences. In this analysis, we study conspicuous consumption and its implications for environmental sociology, ecological footprint analysis, and green criminology. We examine the issue of conspicuous consumption through the study of items that increase the ecological footprint considerably, that is, through the consumption of “luxury commodities.” Specifically, we draw attention to assessing aspects of ecological footprints of super yachts, super homes, luxury vehicles, and private jets. Taken together, the construction and use of these items in the United States alone is likely to create a CO2 footprint that exceeds those from entire nations. These results are not necessarily surprising but suggest that excessive consumption practices of the wealthy may need to be reinterpreted as criminal when they disrupt the normal regeneration and reproduction of ecosystems by generating excessive ecological disorganization.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Social Currents, v. 6, issue 4, p. 377-395
Scholar Commons Citation
Lynch, Michael J.; Long, Michael A.; Stretesky, Paul B.; and Barrett, Kimberly L., "Measuring the Ecological Impact of the Wealthy: Excessive Consumption, Ecological Disorganization, Green Crime, and Justice" (2019). Criminology Faculty Publications. 18.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cjp_facpub/18
