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Supermarket and Green Wave

An Urban Sociological Field Experience in Brazil

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Handbook of Engaged Sustainability

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Abstract

There is an ecological imperative established in the consumer society. Ecocriticism of the consumer society was raised when the environmental movement was born, but has become stronger lately as a repercussion of the anthropogenic hypothesis of global warming. As the greenhouse effect warms the planet, the material and symbolic effects of the global warming debate affect the issue of consumption. A green wave has taken over supermarkets in the West, where green products, eco-bags, and recyclable packaging, to name a few, have become more familiar. In this context, “human being” and “individual consumer” sound like equivalents, and the concept of “consumer society” becomes a metaphor for “humanity.” This article points out the main lines of the sociological debate that emerges from this turning point, and approaches some theoretical perspectives on consumption. It also presents some excerpts from qualitative field experience developed in two supermarket chains in Brasília/Federal District, the capital of Brazil – one located in a high-income region and the other in a low-income region.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Consultant - Communication and International Cooperation, University of Brasília, Brasilia, DF, Brazil

    Josi Paz

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  1. Josi Paz
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Correspondence to Josi Paz .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business, Woodbury University School of Business, Burbank, California, USA

    Joan Marques

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Paz, J. (2018). Supermarket and Green Wave. In: Marques, J. (eds) Handbook of Engaged Sustainability. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53121-2_11-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53121-2_11-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-53121-2

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Supermarket and Green Wave
    Published:
    29 December 2017

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53121-2_11-2

  2. Original

    Supermarket and Green Stuff
    Published:
    20 November 2017

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53121-2_11-1

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