marketing

Earth Day 2023

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Do we really care about the earth?

Saturday, April 22, we celebrated Earth Day 2023. Even though it may seem absurd, some brands used this day to release promotions to sell more products! Maybe the purpose of this day is not clear. Or people just don’t care.

Why do we celebrate Earth Day?

Earth Day was established in 1969 when US Senator Gaylord Nelson witnessed a natural disaster caused by the explosion of an oil well next to Santa Barbara, California.

What is the purpose?

For those involved in achieving a sustainable lifestyle, which goes beyond the empty slogan bombarding us at any one time, Earth Day doesn’t mean a celebration. In fact, there is nothing to celebrate! What’s the point of celebrating? The destruction humans bring? Or maybe give it a pause for one day? Surely not!

The purpose is to raise public awareness. Therefore, making people understand we only have one planet, and we must preserve it. Protect it. We need to give mother earth time to heal herself from the mess we massively put out on a daily basis. So the tons of waste which is the byproduct of our economic system. Of our lifestyle! The byproduct of progress: something we cannot renounce.

But if we follow people who promote sustainable growth, green growth, sustainable fashion, and sustainable tourism, we go nowhere. Indeed, as Herman E. Daly said:

We expected any day to hear about “sustainable sustainability.”

Herman E. Daly

Earth Day 2023 & marketing

We received newsletters offering promotions: shop now, and get your discount to celebrate Earth Day! Really, this is it? Another chance for promoting products? For marketing? Is selling more an effective strategy for fighting global warming? Is it the strategy to protect our planet?

Let’s be serious. It’s just marketing to sell more! There’s no such thing as sustainable growth. Likewise, there’s no such thing as sustainable fashion or sustainable tourism without a dramatic reduction in consumption!

“What is needed in the first instance are reduced levels of consumption, not just changed patterns.”

Herman E. Daly

In the end, brands can play with marketing to celebrate the Earth Day 2023. Tourism, fashion, and any other industry can make their sustainable bubbles. But we won’t solve any problem unless we are not committed – every day – to save the planet by reducing our consumption.

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Sustainable music events: a new trend

Here’s what to know and how it ties in with fashion

Sustainable music events are trending everywhere. And it seems this has been a sustainable summer from every viewpoint: fashion, food and music.

Music events & fashion

The relationship between fashion and music is deep and intricate. Indeed, both fields represent the same culture, expressing contemporary values with different means. But, they tend to intersect more, as they need each other to promote themselves.

Now, not only do fashion events wave the sustainability flag, even music events are marketed as sustainable. Therefore, you can attend a concert, on a beach or in a park, believing you will save the planet!

Greenwashing took over communication.
And, it looks like the saying: “don’t make a promise you can’t keep” doesn’t apply to marketing.
By attending those music festivals or purchasing eco-friendly clothing, people think they are doing something good for the planet, but, on the contrary, nothing changes. Or worse, they damage it.

In some cases, it’s a matter of common sense. For instance, you don’t need a degree to understand that large crowds threaten nature. And reusable cups or collecting garbage during the event will not pay back the damage.

Sustainability or greenwashing?

Mario Tozzi, an influential voice when it comes to environmental matters, highlighted the point that many seem to miss completely:

“50 thousand people attending a concert aren’t sustainable by any natural environment, even more from our already compromised beaches.”

Mario Tozzi

Also, he reported a study from the C.N.R. (National Council of Research) on the National Park “La Maddalena” (Sardinia): every bather takes away from 50 to 100 grams of sand per day.

Music events or fashion: what separates sustainability and greenwashing

The point is made clear: numbers and quantities make the difference. A large number of people, likewise tons of quantities produced and consumed, aren’t sustainable, even if made with the best intentions.

And so, mass concerts in natural environments aren’t sustainable. That’s why it makes sense to use appropriate locations. Likewise, mass productions aren’t sustainable – whether fast fashion or luxury mass productions. Mass travels and flights aren’t sustainable, and so on.

That is the dividing line between sustainability and greenwashing. Anyone who wants to address sustainability matters seriously must start from that point. The rest is nonsense. Human beings are so many that it’s impossible to erase their impact on the planet.

But, whether misguided or due to a lack of understanding, the confusion that marketing creates is larger than the crowds attending music events!

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Fashion & music

Fashion is not only what we wear. Fashion involves the environment around us. Fashion is the music we listen to as well.

Indeed, there is a clear parallel between fashion and music. Both have developed precisely the same pattern.

What kind of music do we listen to nowadays? Which one is popular?
DJs are sampling pieces from the 70s, 80s or 90s, remixing them, then the singer of the moment gives the voice. And, here it is, the modern creative effort.
Usually, this music is popular for a few months. Perhaps none will remember a single track one year later.

Of course, there are always exceptions. Take, for instance, “Walk this way” by Run DMC. Well, as we said, there are exceptions.

What kind of fashion do we see now?

DJs are the new fashion designers. They take designs from the past and apply logos all over, following the above remix pattern.
Design skills are not needed anymore.

Some time ago, a TV show celebrated Fabrizio De André, the great poet-musician. And they interviewed his wife, Dori Ghezzi.
Singers who recently won the Sanremo Festival went on air in a clip, guys dressed up to promote fashion brands more than music but acclaimed as geniuses.
Afterwards, they asked her: “What do you think?”
She replied: “At the time of my husband there was a lot of space, we have experimented a lot, and done a lot. Now maybe these guys don’t have much left. They are scrambling.”

Ads disguised as entertainment – this is how they call it marketing gurus, indeed.

The sampling of things already seen, stealing other people’s ideas that pass for absolute novelties. It is the sign of our times. And in both fields, fashion and music, it is marketing, not art.

But in the end, we do not have to accept it or fit in. We have the freedom to differ, to think differently.

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