Climate Conscience Man and Online Shopping

It seems like every second day while the house is quiet - kids at school and uni, wife at work - the doorbell rings. Parcels. It's always parcels. Rarely, if ever, for him. Usually addressed to his teenagers.

Nike shoes. A second-hand dress from his daughter’s app. Things from Amazon. Sometimes Temu. Bubble wrap, cardboard, air pillows. The recycling bin so full the lid won’t shut.

Out on the street delivery vans prowl all day, idling at corners like sharks. He has a strong sense his place gets less delivered than most in the neighbourhood. Still, what does arrive makes him uneasy.

He gets the convenience. ‘Online’ means you can find things you can’t get in Canberra. He’s done it twice himself: a pair of overalls from an Instagram ad (perfect fit), and a French café-style table and chair setting from a wholesaler after proper searching.

But he can’t unsee the system behind the parcels. Diesel vans coughing black carbon and toxic fumes. Planes. Warehouses. Returns that don’t get repaired - just binned. “It’s recyclable, Dad, so it’s OK,” say the teenagers. He loves them. He also knows that most stuff thrown into the recycling bin ends up in landfill anyway.

There’s the justice bit too. So many markets aren’t Australian. Local shops with real people lose out; wages get squeezed somewhere far away. Workers’ rights? Murky. And he really doesn’t like the idea of sending more money to US tech bros running amok under Donald Trump’s circus tent. Community feels smaller when everything comes in a box.

Climate Conscience Man isn't anti-internet. He just prefers people. He likes asking a real person if a thing is sturdy, repairable, worth it. He likes buying once. And from humans.

So he’s made himself a few rules (and is gently nudging the family):

• Local first. Try the Op Shop, the bike shop, the repair place. If they can order it, let them.

• 48-hour rule. If it still matters after two sleeps, maybe it matters. Half the carts evaporate.

• Slower shipping, fewer trips. No “prime” mindset. Parcel locker over missed-delivery ping-pong.

• Seek durability. Search reviews for repair, spare parts, lasted. Skip mystery-brand electronics.

• Borrow before buy. Cake tins, drills, costumes - someone nearby has one.

• One in, one out. If something arrives, something fixed, gifted or properly recycled leaves. (It's also the offical policy that allows him to have five pushbikes.)

Climate Conscience Man still answers the door. He’s a stay-at-home dad; that’s his gig. He put's the parcels in his teenagers' rooms. He still orders online occasionally too, when local can’t help.

But the doorbell keeps ringing. And the street still feels more and more like a logistics depot.

Today? He’s in those overalls he bought online and sitting on the deck with a cup of tea at the café table he tracked down. He can love a good find and still question the machine that brings too much, too fast. That’s Climate Conscience Man’s line: everything in moderation, including moderation.

Climate Conscience Man and on-line shopping