Abstract
By addressing the social effects associated with resource use, the aim of this paper is to elucidate upon the role of ethical consumption. Qualitative analysis of social issues was conducted for each stage of the resource lifecycle. At the mining stage, there are difficulties related to lifestyles, culture, and employment of indigenous people. Mining companies strive to respond to these social issues as business risks under the concept of social license to operate. The idea of responsible mining and mineral use, which extends the concept, emphasizes avoidance of social effects while taking into consideration the supply chain after mining. Review of industry guidance has revealed that considerable attention has been devoted to the human rights of laborers. At the resource recycling stage, for instance, problems arise with the scrapping of end-of-life home appliances, which can lead to domestic fire accidents at their storage and issues of child labor in unsafe work conditions during the recycling processes in developing countries. A review of recent research papers was undertaken to help grasp quantitative relations between consumption, resource extraction, and social effects. Finally, this paper describes why ethical products are effective, also for resource-intensive goods, and the role ethical consumers play in promoting this.
