In the pursuit of ethical consumerism, teens and adults
are becoming increasingly aware of the impact their
purchases can have on both people and the planet. One
sector with critical social and environmental problems is the
beauty industry, where products often contain ingredients
that are sourced through exploitative practices.

Mica, a naturally occurring mineral, is commonly
found in various products that teens use daily. It creates
a shimmering effect in items such as eyeshadows,
highlighters, shampoos, and even toothpaste in order to
enhance their visual appeal.

However, it’s important to note that the mining of mica
has raised ethical concerns due to practices such as child
labor and unsafe working conditions. In Jharkhand and
Bihar, states in eastern India, illegal mica mining is rampant.
Children as young as five work in hazardous conditions,
extracting mica to support their families. These children
face respiratory issues, physical injuries, and are deprived of
an education. The meager wages earned — often less than
$1 per day — are insufficient to meet their basic needs, so
they become trapped in a cycle of poverty.

In addition to severe impacts on worker education and
health, illegal mica mining presents serious environmental
consequences. The extraction process often involves
destructive methods, including unregulated digging and
deforestation, leading to soil erosion and habitat loss.
These unsustainable practices further perpetuate a cycle
of environmental and economic instability, making it
increasingly difficult for these regions to break free from
the grip of illegal mining activities.

Many industries that rely heavily on mica for their
products lack transparency, but there are a few systems
in place to help consumers identify and address these
unethical practices. Consumers can look for certifications
indicating responsible production, such as COSMOS for
cosmetics, Fair Trade Certified for packaged food, and the
Forest Stewardship Council for product packaging.

Additionally, cosmetic brands such as Lush, Axiology, and
Jane Iredale have taken significant steps to address the mica
crisis. Instead of sourcing natural mica, the three companies
use synthetic mica in their products, which is both free from
child labor and offers superior texture and performance.
Moreover, synthetic mica is environmentally friendly, as
it does not contribute to the microplastic pollution that is
associated with other natural mica alternatives.

As consumers, especially students, it is critical that we
become more conscious of the ethical implications of our
purchases. When making purchases or recommendations
for others, it’s crucial to support brands that prioritize
transparency, responsibility, and sustainability. By looking
for products with recognized certifications and supporting
companies that take proactive steps toward ethical sourcing,
students can contribute to a more equitable and sustainable
beauty industry.

All that glitters is not gold: the hidden cost of mica

In the United States, endurance is a virtue valued above
all else. It’s a foundation of the American dream, the belief
that through determination anyone can achieve anything.
And while not a bad ideal by itself, somehow society has
also accepted that the opposite is true — that
quitting guarantees failure.


As high school students, we are often the most
susceptible to this way of thinking. We’ve all stuck
with things we hated for years simply because of
the faults associated with being a quitter.


However, quitting — especially in high
school — is sometimes the best course of action,
contrary to the sign of laziness or emotional weakness that
it’s stereotypically believed to be.


In order to improve in anything, one first has to accept
that the current state of things is not perfect — that it can be
improved upon. This principle seems so obvious in school
or sports. We go to school and learn because we know that
our current understanding of the world isn’t perfect. We
exercise because the current state of our body isn’t perfect.


Somehow, when it comes to deciding what we spend time
on, we don’t acknowledge imperfection or have any desire
to improve. This isn’t about trivial things like watching
movies or scrolling online — this is about the activities we
put effort and focus into, day after day. All too
often, we endure activities that we don’t enjoy or
don’t improve in simply out of habit.


In being more open to quitting things, we are
acknowledging that the way we spend our time
can be improved. In an article for The New York
Times, MIT professor Sendhil Mullainathan
wrote that “experimentation is an act of humility,
an acknowledgment that there is simply no way of knowing
without trying something different.”


Though the act of quitting is a risk, and therefore admittedly
scary, it’s usually the only way to experiment with figuring
out how to spend our time. And as high school students, it’s
ridiculous to think that we have it all figured out.


In addition to this fear comes the psychological
phenomenon known as the sunk-cost fallacy. The fallacy
(so called because it’s completely illogical)
describes an all too common action that
people take: continuing with something
pointless or unpleasant simply because of past
investment in the activity. Although
you shouldn’t give up after every little
hiccup, if something is consistently
unrewarding, perhaps it’s best to move
on and experiment with a different
activity.


Quitting shouldn’t immediately
be thought of negatively, or as a
sign of defeat. It’s not permanent.
Though it is a change, it can also
provide some distance and a
space for reflection. It allows us to
compare how we feel both with and
without a given activity in our life.
It’s never too late to try new things,
but it’s also never too late to quit.

Franciszka Czerniak's Work