In Sweden, we consume that that we had four earths. The challenges of our increasing consumption, must be taken seriously. After the new säljrekord on Black Friday and now in the holiday shopping season, we want to coin the term ”prylsvinn” to acknowledge and better deal with our over consumption and our throw – and-throw-away culture. With prylsvinn we mean all the time that the gadgets are not used, or they are discarded prematurely, unable to repair or is made for an unnecessarily short lifespan.

The growing consumption is one of the big challenges of our time. It takes courageous efforts to achieve the UN global goals on sustainable consumption and production to 2030. Even if emissions of greenhouse gases in Sweden have decreased by 25 per cent since 1990, we have simultaneously increased the emissions from our consumption in other countries where the production takes place. According to a report by the environmental protection agency recently released the as is 65 percent of the carbon emissions, and 80 percent of the use of pesticides and dangerous chemical products linked to our consumption outside the borders of Sweden. Sweden is located in the top of the list of those who charged the earth the most.

, both in the regulatory framework, business models and consumption patterns to drive the change that is required. The changes that are being made now is too slow. So this year for Singles Day, Black Friday, and now in the holiday shopping season which is expected to hit record again, feels the issue of sustainable consumption is even more urgent.

An example of where the use is even lower but still generate large quantities of waste is drilling, which on average used approximately 18 minutes in his lifetime, but leaves the 51 kilos of waste.

There are major environmental benefits to produce fewer products and more sustainable products and use the products we already have for a longer time, repair, purchase used or share it, we rarely use instead of buying new.

A challenge with consumption is that it is not one problem but several. It concern, among other things:

• Substandard life and the opportunity to repair the things that are manufactured.

• Low level – many things collecting dust over 99 percent of its life and then discarded.

• Low reuse – many things and materials that can be recycled are thrown away in the day.

We are now launching the word “prylsvinn” as a generic term for these problems. We want to get up prylsvinnet on the agenda and reduce it to such a degree that the phenomenon eventually becomes a word that is no longer needed.

We have three suggestions to reduce the prylsvinnet:

Each product’s ”invisible waste” has a significant environmental impact. It makes it harder for us consumers to make active choices to reduce prylsvinnet. A cell phone weighs, for example, less than 200 grams, but it occurs all the 86 kilos of waste when it is produced. A portable computer gives rise to 1.2 tonnes of waste. This ”invisible waste” has a significant environmental impact.

For that we consumers are better will gain knowledge about the impact on the environment, and thus gain motivation to reduce prylsvinnet, needed more clear information when it comes to the cost of production in the form of carbon dioxide, oil-, water – and waste. On food and clothing, there are a table of contents and, often, traceability – in the same way it ought to be seen what environmental impact the products have.

The chemical content set forth must also be able to be traced. When science and the law moves forward, topics that had previously been approved to use in goods after a period of time given the restrictions. We believe that it must be possible to trace the substances and the products they are in so that we can deal with them appropriately.

The need for clearer guidelines and requirements on the sakers reparerbarhet and life expectancy. The ecodesign directive, which is currently in force, for example, washing machines and dishwashers, has gone from only contain requirements on the energy consumption to also include requirements on life, reparerbarhet and information on hazardous substances. The corresponding legislation is needed for many more products.

Reduced vat on small repair of textile and bikes have facilitated continued use, but it needed more action for it to be just as easy or easier to reuse than to buy new. Many products manufactured today to not last as long and in this way increase the sales. Would there be a demand on the producers to label their products with the life expectancy, or the estimated rate of re-use so it would mean that more consumers chose the goods. Long durability is a financial incentive for rental, sharing, and begagnathandel. Products should be designed so that they can be repaired, to the extent it is possible, without the requirement of licensed service centers. They should also be designed so that it is possible to separate the materials from each other so that these can more easily be reused and recycled.

the Sharing of under-utilised transport, surfaces and things is an important piece of the puzzle in the transformation to a more sustainable consumption. According to a survey conducted by the IVL Swedish environmental research institute can a car that is shared (for example, by car or by private hire) is to replace between 4 and 13 cars, depending on how many are doing away with the own the car, or refrain from buying a car of his own. An example of where the use is even lower but still generate large quantities of waste is drilling, which on average used approximately 18 minutes in his lifetime, but leaves the 51 kilos of waste.

the Government and the authorities need to create the right conditions to stimulate the development in this area and reduce the prylsvinnet. An action can be to investigate and introduce a fribelopp at sek 50 000 for private hire that provides a positive environmental impact, in the same way as private individuals can rent out their home, sell second-hand and engage in recreational activities for up to 50 000 sek per year.

and with the help of these three keys to improve legislation and change the norm of what is good consumption.