The Business Times
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PERSPECTIVE

The high stakes of low quality

Consumers should demand – and companies should deliver – products that are more durable, multifunctional and, crucially, socially and environmentally responsible

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    • When your life's at stake, you want to ensure your gear stands up to the test. The writer and his climber buddies wanted stronger pitons and sturdier carabiners to support them as they hung thousands of feet above the Yosemite Valley floor.
    • When your life's at stake, you want to ensure your gear stands up to the test. The writer and his climber buddies wanted stronger pitons and sturdier carabiners to support them as they hung thousands of feet above the Yosemite Valley floor. PHOTO: NETFLIX

    Yvon Chouinard

    Published Fri, Nov 24, 2023 · 02:56 PM

    OVER 50 years ago, my wife Malinda and I bought a chef’s knife of carbon steel that we still use. It could be passed down to several generations. Compare that to the junk stainless steel ones that might not rust but that won’t hold an edge to cut a tomato.

    Cheap products, made poorly and thrown away quickly, are killing people and the planet.

    Since 1999, humans have far surpassed – by billions of metric tonnes – the amount of Earth’s resources that scientists estimate we can sustainably use. The culprit: our overconsumption of stuff, from shoddy tools to fast fashion that is trendy one day, trash the next.

    sustainabilityGreenhouse gas emissionsPerspective

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