Senior Spotlight: The Greenest Generation?

Earth Day may be far behind us, but most of us make choices to go green every day in some large or small way. A recent release by DS Smith, a leading provider of sustainable packaging solutions and recycling services worldwide, has declared that Baby Boomers are the most eager generation with regards to recycling. Read on for 5 surprising facts about Baby Boomers and what it means for them to live sustainably.

#1: Baby Boomers were THE generation that came of age amid the first Earth Day in 1970.

#2: Boomers have outpaced all other generations in taking individual responsibility for recycling, while all generations measured equally in their desire to re-use extra packaging from e-commerce spending. All generations surveyed also equally preferred sustainable shipping materials.

#3: 65% of Baby Boomers surveyed agreed with the statement that ‘you can never have too many boxes lying around.’

#4: 28% of all surveyed consumers, Baby Boomers included, believe that shipping packaging is a constant reminder of shopping online too much!

#5: The pandemic initiated a surge of online spending in 2020, with consumers aged 65 and older spending 49% more online than in 2019.

One more interesting piece of data comes from ‘Recycling International’, a publication that nearly a decade ago declared that ‘Baby Boomers are better recyclers than millennials.’ This survey found that while millennials are concerned about the environment, they are more likely to buy hybrid or electric cars and use refillable water bottles, while Boomers are more likely to make a strong effort to physically sort and recycle materials.

The moral of the story: we can all learn from members of any generation while we ourselves are at any age! The differences in our belief systems are most likely linked to events that emerged during our coming-of-age years – which is most likely why Boomers are passionate about recycling while younger generations are focused on electric cars.

Certainly makes one wonder what innovations will fuel the sustainability efforts of our rising generations… 

Bobbi Decker
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