Worldwatch Institute State of the World 2004 Book Launch Jan. 8

1/5/2004

From: Susan Finkelpearl of the Worldwatch Institute, 202-452-1992 ext. 517 or sfinkelpearl@worldwatch.org

News Advisory:

What:

Press conference to launch Worldwatch Institute's State of the World 2004 book

Who:

-- Christopher Flavin, president of the Worldwatch Institute

-- Gary Gardner, director of research at the Worldwatch Institute

-- Lisa Mastny, research associate, co-project director State of the World 2004

-- Brian Halweil, senior researcher, co-project director State of the World 2004

When:

Thursday, Jan. 8, at Noon EST

(Lunch: 12-1 p.m., Briefing: 1-2 p.m.)

Where:

Worldwatch Institute, 1776 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, D.C., 8th Floor

Embargo:

Thursday, Jan. 8, 6 p.m. EST (2300 GMT)

RSVP:

Susan Finkelpearl, 202-452-1992 ext. 517, sfinkelpearl@worldwatch.org

DETAILS:

RICHER, FATTER, AND NOT MUCH HAPPIER

The world is consuming goods and services at an unsustainable pace, with serious consequences for the well-being of people and the planet, reports the Worldwatch Institute in State of the World 2004.

More than a quarter of humanity (about 1.7 billion) has entered the "consumer class," adopting the diets, transportation systems, and lifestyles that were limited to the rich nations of Europe, North America, and Japan during most of the last century.

Consumption is not in itself a bad thing. The world's poor will need to ramp up their consumption in order to satisfy basic needs for food, clean water, and sanitation. Yet consumption among the world's wealthy elites, and increasingly among the middle class, has gone well beyond satiating needs. There is little evidence that the consumption locomotive is braking -- particularly in the United States, where most people are amply supplied with the goods and services needed to lead a good life.

This rising worldwide consumption is more than the planet can bear, says the report. Forests, wetlands, and other natural places are shrinking to make way for people and their homes, farms, malls, and factories.

Growing dissatisfaction with current consumption trends has led consumer advocates, economists, policymakers, and environmentalists to develop creative options for meeting people's needs while dampening the environmental and social costs of mass consumption. Yet much remains to be done.

State of the World 2004 points to a range of opportunities that are already available to governments, businesses, and consumers to curb and redirect consumption such as ecological tax reform and product take back laws.