> It's important we learn to figure this out as consumers, because I fear otherwise our civilization will die on lots of bad decisions driven by not knowing the total costs
I don't think it is feasible to figure these things out as a consumer in any way that scales to the range of products that we use, changes in manufacturing and materials over time, and the available attention that each consumer can dedicate to the problem.
I would like to see more externalities incorporated into the price of goods, via taxes or other market intervention. Of course, that's hideously difficult as well, but I feel it's closer to being feasible than consumers estimating externalities of each product themselves.
(Probably we need both approaches, and more besides.)
Edit: a good thing about incorporating externalities into prices is that to a large extent it should naturally aggregate through the whole production/supply chain. If plastic is a problem and you tax plastic feed-stock (probably someone who knows about plastic manufacture would have a better suggestion, sorry), then that naturally will be incorporated into the price of everything made out of plastic, proportionately to the amount of plastic the thing required.
I don't think it is feasible to figure these things out as a consumer in any way that scales to the range of products that we use, changes in manufacturing and materials over time, and the available attention that each consumer can dedicate to the problem.
I would like to see more externalities incorporated into the price of goods, via taxes or other market intervention. Of course, that's hideously difficult as well, but I feel it's closer to being feasible than consumers estimating externalities of each product themselves.
(Probably we need both approaches, and more besides.)
Edit: a good thing about incorporating externalities into prices is that to a large extent it should naturally aggregate through the whole production/supply chain. If plastic is a problem and you tax plastic feed-stock (probably someone who knows about plastic manufacture would have a better suggestion, sorry), then that naturally will be incorporated into the price of everything made out of plastic, proportionately to the amount of plastic the thing required.