'Green technology' is fine, but to really save the planet we need to shop less J.B. MacKinnon’s new book makes the case for the world’s citizens to buy a ‘little less stuff’—or else May 25, 2021 Lockdowns have curbed shopping, making the case for an effective fix for our climate crisis (Mark Felix/AFP/Getty Images) If the purpose of a thought experiment is to cast new light on familiar phenomena, the better to inspire a cascade of new thoughts on scarcely registered realities, J.B. MacKinnon certainly delivers in The Day the World Stops Shopping. On his way to exploring what could happen in the wake of a sudden 25 per cent drop in human consumption, MacKinnon offers eye-opening explanations of everything from why energy-saving products have not decreased climate-threatening carbon emissions to what causes those mysterious holes in your T-shirt.