The truth about online shopping and its environmental impact

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🗞️ Driving the news: The global e-commerce sector, boosted by the COVID-19 pandemic and dominated by giants like Amazon, Alibaba, and Walmart, has witnessed a significant growth, altering consumer expectations towards instant and cost-free deliveries

🔭 The context: Consumerism has soared, turning e-commerce into a multibillion-dollar industry. This surge, marked by a record 22 billion monthly e-commerce visits and $26.7 trillion in sales by June 2020, reflects a profound transformation in shopping habits globally

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: This uptrend in online shopping poses severe environmental challenges
• It contributes to the global supply chain crisis, leads to substantial CO2 emissions through shipping, and generates immense packaging waste, particularly in China, a leading e-commerce market

⏭️ What's next: Unless a change in consumer behavior and expectations occurs, the environmental impact of online shopping could reach irreversible levels
• The industry’s sustainability depends on a collective shift in mindset from both consumers and producers

📈 One stat: In 2020, shipping and return of products accounted for 37% of total greenhouse gas emissions generated by e-commerce

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