Published on: Thursday, July 16, 2009   

Kuala Lumpur: Today (Thursday) is Buy Nothing Day and you can be part of a global movement that will not be making purchases for the entire day. 

Buy Nothing Day is a consumer awareness campaign that has been going on in countries like the United States, Canada and Britain. The aim of the campaign is to allow consumers to reflect on their spending habits and discourage unnecessary purchases. 

Organised here by the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations as part of the National Consumer Campaign (3K) programme, Buy Nothing Day in Malaysia is marked annually on July 16 and is entering into its second year. 

3K coordinator Paul Selvaraj expects more people to participate this year. 

According to him, 20,000 brochures are being distributed at toll plazas and LRT stations this year, compared with last year when they distributed 5,000. 

"It will be fantastic if this campaign receives the same type of support as Earth Hour," said Selvaraj, who is also the chairman for the Consumer Research and Resource Centre. 

He said the campaign should not be seen as a large scale boycott or a form of protest. "The aim is to educate consumers to be more prudent in their daily expenditure. We hope it would send a clear message to consumers that one can spend a day without buying anything." 

And what would he and his family be doing on Thursday? "Anything but shopping!" he said. 

Be part of the campaign 

* Instead of going to the local kopitiam for coffee, make your own coffee at home. 

* Don't go out for lunch; prepare your lunch at home. 

* Cook dinner instead of having dinner out. 

* Do recreational activities such as jogging and cycling at the free public park. 

* Instead of spending money buying books, visit the library. 

* If a close one is celebrating their birthday, make your own personalised birthday card. Even better, challenge your own creativity by making your own gift! 

* Be the host of a movie-viewing party and invite your friends. 

* Visit a museum where entry is free. 

* Try free samples at the supermarket. 

Source: http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=66342