I was raised by Depression Era parents. My adopted mom was half Mi-Kmaq (Indigenous). I was a kid when paper bags (which we have again) were replaced with plastic.

We never had any money. My parents were poor as shit. But they knew about conserving resources. They had no choice.

Here in Canada. we do at least pay some lip service (not enough respect, but you know what I'm saying) to our First Nations people in this regard. We call it Traditional Knowledge.

Your position is spot on! I was raised broke. I raised my kids mostly broke. I can rebuild, reuse and repurpose anything. Conservation isn't new, it's just fashionable.