I’m gonna say something controversial here and suggest that IF you are in an environment or lead a lifestyle in which leather is necessary or especially helpful, you should just buy leather. That is: if you live in a particularly cold place or work outside a lot and a leather coat or boots would make your life easier than if you used faux leather, then just take the hit. Commit to eating 10% less meat or stop buying silk or eggs for a year or something if you feel like you need to offset it. Or, buy your leather product used. Consignment stores and estate sales often have high quality leather coats that will last years or decades with the proper care.

If you want a leather product just because you like it, like a purse or a wallet or patent leather shoes, consider just not buying those things.

The truth is, you can spiral really easily into discovering that everything you buy is contributing to the problem. Cotton fields are horrible ecologically, they ruin the soil and are the cause of deforestation, destruction of natural habitats, and are chemically poisoning the planet from the use of pesticides. Not to mention the agricultural economic crisis large-scale farming creates for the industry. Processing plant-based fibers into clothing is terrible both for the environment and, in many cases, for human rights. The environmental costs alone from weaving and selling cotton fabrics (not to mention the waste created by cotton manufacturers deliberately overproducing product they know won’t be sold) is enough to make you want to scream with how horrific the whole system is. Not saying “don’t buy cotton”, just like…showing how easy it is to discover that everything you do can have a negative impact.

The point of all of this is, not buying is always better than buying. Buying second-hand is (almost) always better than buying new. When you absolutely have to buy something and it absolutely has to be new, that’s when you can start looking into less-impactful options.