Emotional Attachment: Developing Lasting Relationships with our Belongings

Jonathan Chapman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle

Abstract

The rampant consumption and waste of natural resources so prevalent in the developed world is a legacy of modern times, born largely from the inappropriate marriage of excessive material durability with fleeting product life spans. The UK alone condemns a massive 1.25 million tonnes of waste to landfill per year; waste consisting of fully-functioning toasters, refrigerators, mobile phones, vacuum cleaners and a whole host of other domestic must-haves; each year it is estimated that around 5 million TVs find their way into this underground club for discarded and unwanted products. Waste of this nature proliferates the developed world, and in many cases can be seen as nothing more than a symptom of a failed relationship between the subject and the object.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)47-51
Number of pages5
JournalWaste Management World
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2006

Keywords

  • WEEE Directive
  • product life extension
  • waste
  • sustainability
  • design

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Emotional Attachment: Developing Lasting Relationships with our Belongings'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this