#12 – Responsible Consumption and Production

The growing global population has increased the demand for natural resources — inflicting climate change, harming nature, and rising pollution levels. According to the United Nations, around 14% of the worlds’ food is lost along the supply chain before arriving in the end market. Humans purchase 1 million plastic drinking bottles every minute and throw away 5 trillion single-use plastic bags each year. Our increased dependency on electronics has added to the waste bucket — around 7.3 kilograms of e-waste per capita in 2019, of which only 1.7 kilograms were documented to have been managed in an environmentally sustainable way.

Overall, data indicates a rise of almost 40% in the global material footprint per capita, from 8.8 metric tons in 2000 to 12.2 metric tons in 2017. Similarly, domestic material consumption per capita increased by more than 40%, from 8.7 metric tons in 2000 to 12.2 metric tons in 2017.

These consumption trends have prompted the United Nations and all the stakeholders to act under SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production. The goal is meant to ensure good use of resources, improve energy efficiency, and sustainable infrastructure, provide access to basic services, green and decent jobs, and ensure a better quality of life for all.