Recycling encourages people to buy sustainably

Question: Does recycling work?
Position1 of 2›: Yes, recycling does work and improves the environment
Argument‹3 of 3: Recycling encourages people to buy sustainably

More and more people are becoming eco-friendly and buying recycled products. This is a great investment for consumers and the environment.

The argument

Recycling educates people about how we should take care of the environment. With that knowledge, people will be prone to do and buy more environmentally friend things. They’ll buy metal and paper straws, take more initiative to not use so many cars or buy an electric one, and sort through their trash. By encouraging a culture of recycling, people will become more conscientious about other products they use as well, having wider positive effects for the environment.

Premises

[P1]Recycling educates people about caring for the environment. [P2] With that awareness, people make more sustainable choices — reusable straws, electric cars, sorting waste. [P3] A culture of recycling makes people more conscientious about all the products they use. [C] Therefore, because it encourages people to buy sustainably, recycling works and improves the environment.

Counter-arguments

No matter how much people learn about and want to recycle, it’s mainly up to industries to carry the recycling movement. Although paper and metal straws are used in a few areas of the world, plastic and waste is still produced by big companies. Advertising encourages people to buy products that harm the environment. Unfortunately, eco-friendly lifestyles aren’t advertised much, making them unpopular or unknown to the public. Plus, electric cars are very expensive, and for many it wouldn’t be convenient to switch to different ways to commute.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] It’s ultimately up to people to practice what they learn. Most likely, they won’t recycle as much as hoped. [Rejecting P2] Changing a lifestyle on a large scale is tough and shouldn’t be expected of people.

Proponents cited

Haley Shapley
“While it sometimes feels like we don’t have much control over what happens down the line, one of the best ways to ensure that there will be a healthy planet for future generations is to teach little ones about recycling now so that they grow up with an awareness about waste and an appreciation for preserving resources.”
Jennifer Kunst
“The mind is like a rubber band; you can easily stretch it temporarily, but it snaps back to its resting position. We resist change.”
Allan Gerlat
“The study commissioned by the Washington-based National Waste & Recycling Association concluded that two-thirds of Americans are clear on what should be recycled. The association said this is an opportunity to educate the remaining third on what can be recycled.”
Harleena Singh
“You can see a thousand problems, but even if you attempt to solve one problem – you make a difference.”