Lab+4

__**The Material Economy:**__ is a linear system that involves production and consumerism. There are five stages involved that interact with people and the environment. The system works in order, which includes the following stages:

//**Extraction:**// is the first stage of the material economy. It is the process in which raw materials such as natural resources, are taken from their original source and made into manufactured products. The wealthy US economy in particular consumes a huge amount of distributed manufactured products relative to the rest of the world. Many of these products are made from resources taken from enriched locations around the planet, such as third world countries. As a result, our planet's natural resources are being wiped out at a drastic rate, which is dangerous to the future of the planet and life as we know it.

//**Production:**// is the second stage of the material economy. It is the stage where extracted resources are processed and made into products. Many products are created with toxic chemicals and materials that are hazardous not only our planet as a result of pollution, but also to ourselves! Most consumers are unaware of the fact that commonly consumed products, such as pillows, are hazardous to our health because they are created with toxic chemicals. This also poses as a problem for the workers who actually make the products in the factories, because they are constantly exposed to various hazardous chemical materials.

//**Distribution:**// is the third stage of the material economy. It is the part of the system when manufactured are released from the factories, and distributed into the consumer's market. In stores, most products are sold at their lowest possible price, so that many can be sold as fast as possible. The problem here is that the store price may not even cover what the product actually cost to make and distribute, therefore how are profits being made and who is covering the costs? Well, many of the costs are 'externalized' as third world countries pay with the loss of their natural resources, and poor labour workers pay as a result of their cheap wages with no health insurance; leaving most of the money saved for corporations.

//**Consumption:**// is the fourth stage of the material economy, and perhaps the most important stage as it represents the purpose of the entire system. This is the part where consumers go out to stores and purchase tons of manufactured goods. Although the purchasing of products is necessary to our survival and well-being, we are just consuming too much as we are being brainwashed by corporations and advertisements to desire things and make us feel inadequate if we don't own the latest products on the market. The US government itself also encourages people to shop in order to keep materials flowing and to sustain its consumer society; therefore we continue to consume at an ever-increasing rate. Planned obsolescence and Perceived obsolescence are two terms that describe an aspect of producer/consumer behaviour. Planned obsolescence holds that producers purposely make their products in way that will quickly outdate them, thus prompting consumers to keep purchasing. Perceived obsolescence refers to the idea that producers use advertisements to manipulate consumers into wanting the latest products, and to make them feel inadequate if they don't have them. Our society has lead us to believe that we need uneccessary things; that what we already have is either not good enough, or just not enough.

//**Disposal:**// is the fifth and final stage of the material economy. It is the stage when manufactured products are disposed of; generally within six months of their purchase. Disposed products are ultimately either taken to landfills where they are buried into the earth, or burned in incineraterators. The method of burning trash waste in these incinerators causes the release of toxic chemicals into the air, which is harmful to the health of our planet as it contributes to pollution and climate change. Recycling our waste is useful, however it cannot be enough to alone dramatically reduce the effects of the material economy system. Annie Leonard suggests other methods of intervening, such as green chemistry, zero waste, and closed loop production. New school ideas are needed so that the existing linear system can evolve into a circular one; a new system that is efficient and safe.