Sustainable
Consumption:
concepts and cases
Frances Fahy
(Geography)
&
Henrike Rau
(Political Science and Sociology)
1
Key questions to
explore…..
Introduction/overview
 Definitions
 How do we define sustainable consumption?
 What is the problem with consumption?
Discussion
 Key strands
 Alternatives
2
Concept mapping?
 Similar to brainstorming
 A concept map is a diagram showing
the relationships among concepts
 Concept Map of the Seasons…(Novak
and Cannes, 2008)
3
4
5
5 minutes
No prior formal knowledge
2 concept maps
6
7
Sustainable…
 2 basic forms
 Absolute condition – natural science
 Sustainability is as a social construction
 Sustainable anything………..
8
Consumption..
 Household consumption is defined as the
consumption of goods and services by
households including the selection,
purchase, use, maintenance, repair and
disposal of any product or service
(OECD, 2002).
 Contrasting approaches to
consumption....
9
Human development
perspective
 Enlarges people’s capacity to live long and to
live well
 Food, water, sanitation, medical care, clothing are
all necessary for leading along and healthy life
 Schooling and access to information through the
media, books…
 Transport and energy…
 Means of participating in the life of a
community… Mauss (1927) The Gift
10
Consumption…
 In sociology and anthropology studies –
consumption activities are seen in the
context of social relations and institutions
 For economists – the focus is usually on
consumption of final goods and services.
macro/micro luxury/necessity
11
For philosophers and
theologians
 concern with consumption relates to the
tension between values embodied in
materialism and those of simpler lifestyles
In Islam…
 ‘It is difficult for a man laden with riches to
climb the steep path that leads to bliss’
 ‘Riches are not from an abundance of worldly
goods, but from a contented mind’
12
In Buddhism
 ‘By the thirst for riches, the foolish man
destroys himself as if he were his own enemy’
Finally from an Environmental Science
perspective…
depleting natural capital – in addition what is
consumed is ultimately disposed of – creating
waste and pollution problems.
13
Limits to Growth …(Meadows
et al. 1972)
 Fundamentals in Environmental Planning
 Limits to growth
 INCREASING POLLUTION & RAPID
DEPLETION OF NATURAL RESOURCES
14
The Water Lily
‘The lily doubles in size every day and if left
unchecked will smother the pond in 30 days, killing
all the other living things in the water. Day after day
the plant seems small and so it is decided to leave it
grow until it half-covers the pond, before cutting it
back. They are then asked, on what day that will
occur.
This is revealed to be
the 29th day, and then
there will be just one
day to save the
pond’(adapted from
Meadows et al. 1972)
15
Conclusions: Limits to Growth
Meadows et al. (1972:2324)
If the present growth trends in world population, industrialization,
food production and resource depletion continue
unchanged, the limits to growth on this planet will be
reached sometime within the next hundred years. The most
probable result will be a rather sudden and uncontrollable
decline in both population and industrial capacity.
16
Defining Sustainable
Consumption
 Agenda 21 – easier to define the
‘unsustainability’ of patterns
 Many diverse definitions…
17
Sus Consumption
Definitions…
 Sustainable consumption has been defined as the use of
goods and services that respond to basic needs and bring
a better quality of life, while minimising the use of natural
resources, toxic materials, and emissions of waste and
pollutants over the life cycle, so as not to jeopardise the
needs of future generations (see Jackson, 2006).
 Sustainable consumption is not about consuming less, it
about consuming differently, consuming efficiently, and
having an improved quality of life (UNEP 1999).
 Sustainable consumption and production is continuous
economic and social progress that respects the limits of
the earth’s eco-systems, and meets the needs and
aspirations of everyone for a better quality of life, now and
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for future generations to come (DTI 2003).
 Sustainable consumption is consumption that supports
the ability that supports the ability of current and future
generations to meet their material and other needs,
without causing irreversible damage to the environment
or loss of function in natural systems (OCSC 2000).
 The special focus of sustainable consumption is on the
economic activity of choosing using and disposing of
goods and services and how this can be changed to
bring social and environmental benefit (IIED 1998).
 Sustainable consumption is a balancing act. It is about
consuming in such a way as to protect the environment,
use natural resources wisely and promote quality of life
now, while not spoiling the lives of future consumers
(NCC, 2003).
19
 Sustainable consumption is an umbrella term
that brings together a number of key issues,
such as meeting needs, enhancing quality of
life, improving efficiency, minimizing waste,
taking a lifecycle perspective and taking into
account the equity dimension; integrating
these component parts in the central question
of how to provide the same or better services
to meet the basic requirements of life and the
aspiration for improvement, both current and
future generations, while continually reducing
environmental damage and the risk to human
health (UNEP, 2001).
20
All these definitions…
Each take a different position on
 …the extent to which sustainable
consumption involves changes in consumer
behaviour and lifestyles.
 …the extent to which the differing positions
imply consuming more efficiently,
consuming more responsibly or simply
consuming less.
21
In summary…
Sustainable consumption works from the
recognition that
 the earths resources are limited
 environmental damage is directly and indirectly
linked to the exploitation of these resources
 that consumer power and choice can be utilised to
produce positive environmental change (Goodman
2008).
22
Other terms…
 Green consumption
 Ethical consumption – (moral
responsibility and care)
 Sustainable consumption (social justice)
 Demand leading supply?
 Last 10 yrs…powerful movement…
23
The Silent Spring (Carson,
1963)
 “There was a strange stillness. The birds for
example – where had they gone? Many people
spoke of them, puzzled and disturbed. The
feeding stations in the backyards were
deserted. The few birds seen anywhere were
moribund; they trembled violently and could not
fly. It was a spring without voices…
 On the farms the hens brooded, but no chicks
hatched…”
24
So what’s the problem with
consumption?
 Consumer goods and services play a huge
variety of roles in our lives –
 including the satisfaction of functional needs,
 the construction of identity, and
 the pursuit of status and social distinction.
The diversity of roles has lead many commentators to
refer to the modern consumer as ‘unmanageable’
(Gabrail and Lang 1995).
25
Discussion
Strands that dominate the current SC
discourse

Economic Frame: Calls to consume more
responsibly etc still operate within the current
confines of the economy

Structure/Agency debate e.g. eco labels –
onus on individual consumer reluctance to
tackle the wider structures

North/South

Materiality aspect
26
Transport, Mobility
and the
Sustainable ‘Consumption of
Distance’
27
Key questions
1) What connections exist between spatial
mobility and sustainable consumption?
2) What can we learn from the experience of
car dependency in Ireland?
3) Why is it so difficult to change
unsustainable mobility patterns?
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Introduction
 Physical mobility – integral part of
consumption of goods and services
 Global flows of people, money and
goods can both help and hinder
sustainability efforts
 Sustainable ‘consumption of distance’
requires integration of economic,
environmental and social/cultural factors
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It is increasingly evident that modern
lifestyles in affluent societies, and the
mobility behaviours associated with such
lifestyles, are not compatible with
sustainable outcomes. Such outcomes
include an acceptable level of
environmental quality, efficient use of
human, natural, and financial resources,
social cohesion and just distributions of
opportunities and costs of using transport
and other public infrastructure […]
(Donaghy, Poppelreuter and Rudinger 2005, p.1)
30
Economic factors



Mobility and economic performance
Cost of providing transport infrastructure
Externalities
 Productivity loss, time pressure and stressrelated health problems…
 Mobility – luxury or necessity?
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Environmental factors




GHG emissions
Local noise and air pollution
Fragmentation of habitats
Fossil fuel extraction and use
32
Social/cultural factors
 Social and cultural factors key to sustainable
transport
 e.g. public attitudes to modes of transport; acceptance of new
transport technologies; perceptions of risk; mobility,
accessibility and social in/exclusion
 remain largely unexplored in Ireland (and
elsewhere)
 e.g. lack of data; focus on Dublin; case studies; low priority in
policy process
33
Increased car use
Further dispersal of
residential areas
Dispersal of residential
areas
Reduced public transport
use, increased car use
Lack of car
Inaccessible jobs/facilities
Limited chances
Area based social
exclusion
Reinforces local lifestyle –
Limited PT use
Figure 1: Car dependency and social exclusion (adapted from Pickup and Giuliano 2005, p.41)
34
Social consequences of
‛over-consumption of distance’
 The ‘fall of public man‘ (Sennett 1977)
 Decline in social capital (Putnam 2000)
 Decline of the nation-state (Urry 2007)
35
Ireland’s Car Culture
Facts and Figures
 Ireland one of the most car-dependent
countries in the EU
 Below EU-average car ownership but high car use
 Under-developed public transport sector
 Low levels of walking and cycling
 Transport sector third largest contributor
to national GHG emissions (20% in 2006)
36
Population density by
electoral divisions, 2006
37
Ireland‘s GHG emissions
1990-2020
Source: EPA report, September 2008.
38
Ireland‘s GHG emissions by
sector
Source: EPA report, September 2008.
39
EPA predictions for CO2
emissions from transport
sector 2006-2020
 Baseline scenario: +23%
 With measures scenario: +22%
 With additional measures scenario: +12%
 Forecast depends on three sets of key variables:
 Economic indicators (GDP)
 Vehicle technology
 Future travel behaviour of individuals
40
The need to curb the massive growth in energy
consumption and associated emissions of CO2 and
NOx from road traffic is a daunting challenge at the
present time. The problem is exacerbated by the
incompatibility between public transport services and
the scale of housing development throughout the
country. This challenge can only be met by breaking the
link between the growth in road transport and growth in
the economy, which requires a radical shift to bus, rail
and cycle use. The State cannot expect to comply with
its emissions ceilings for […] GHGs if their contributions
from road traffic are not soon brought under control
(EPA Ireland, 2004).
41
Policy background
 Responsibility for transport policy and
implementation with central government and
state agencies
 Persistence of ‘predict and provide’ paradigm
 Transport 21
 €34bn capital investment framework 2006-2015
 Key priorities
 a) road construction
 b) large-scale infrastructure in Dublin
42
Transport 21 – Annual
expenditure
SECTOR
Roads
PT
Regional airports
TOTAL
Expenditure p.a. (bn €)
3.72
0.99
0.004
4.71
Source: http://www.transport21.ie/What_Is_Transport_21/Funding/Funding.html (accessed 28/08/2008)
43
Ireland’s Car Culture:
The Hegemony of Automobility
‘This is an economy that is working and a country
that is at work. With over two million people in
employment, more and more people are on the
move. With Ireland’s increased prosperity, car
usage has risen exponentially. […] the car plays a
crucial role in our society with nearly half of all
households owning two or more cars and a third
with three cars or more’
(An Taoiseach/Prime minister of Ireland Bertie Ahern, Foreword to
Hibernian Motoring Report 2007, p.2, italics added).
44
Car ownership rates
Source: CSO Statistical Yearbook 2007, p. 276.
45
Ireland’s Car Culture:
Winners and Losers?
 Links between walkability of neighbourhoods, social
capital and health (Leyden 2003)
 Significant differences between socio-economic groups
(Wickham and Lohan 1999; Wickham 2006)
 Groups most affected by mobility disadvantage include:





Low income households
People parenting alone
Children and young people
Rural populations (esp. elderly)
People with disabilities …
46
Car Ownership and Socio-economic
Group (IRL)
SEG
%
Employers and managers
93.9
Higher professional
93
Lower professional
89.7
Non-manual
80.2
Manual skilled
86.5
Semi-skilled
78.5
Unskilled
66.1
Own account workers
94.7
Farmers
90.1
Agricultural workers
76.7
All others gainfully occupied or unknown
54.5
TOTAL
80.3
Source: CSO (2007) Census 2006 report, Vol. 12, Table 82, SEG of reference person and motor car availability
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As a part-time student who also works and
looks after a baby I cannot afford to spent
long periods of time waiting at bus stops or
walking for 40 mins each way. I would be
happy to pay on an hourly basis or avail of
a park and ride facility if they were available
[…].
(NUIG Transport Survey 2004, female student, No.39).
48
Policy initiatives
 Fiscal measures:
 Congestion charge for Dublin (planned)
 Changes in motor tax (Phase I in July 2008)
 Policy initiatives:
 Rural Transportation Programme (2006-present)
 Reform of bus licensing system (incl. privatisation
– in progress)
 DoT Sustainable transport policy document
(2009)
49
Barriers
to sustainable transport and
mobility
 Legacy issues
 e.g. ‘predict-and-provide’ mindset




Lack of investment in alternatives
Inadequate policy measures & lack of policy integration
Effects of technological progress
Social and cultural barriers
...
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 Recommended Reading
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Böhm,
hm, S., C. Jones, C. Land and M. Paterson (2006). ‘Introduction: Impossibilities of Automobility’
Automobility’, The
Sociological Review, 54 (1): 11-16.
Cresswell,
Cresswell, T. (2005). On the Move: Mobility in the Modern Western World.
EPA (2008). Ireland’
Ireland’s National Greenhouse Gas Emissions Projections to 2020. Dublin: EPA Ireland.
Available from:
http://www.epa.ie/downloads/pubs/air/airemissions/projections_publication%20september%202008%20
http://www.epa.ie/downloads/pubs/air/airemissions/projections_publication%20september%202008%20
pdf%20(2)2.pdf (accessed 1/11/2008).
Flynn, Brendan. 2007. The Blame Game: Rethinking Ireland’
Ireland’s Sustainable Development and
Environmental Performance. Dublin: Irish Academic Press.
Flyvbjerg,
Flyvbjerg, Bent. 1998. Rationality and Power: Democracy in Practice. Chicago/London:
Chicago/London: University of
Chicago Press.
Hine,
Hine, J. and F. Mitchell (2003). Transport Disadvantage and Social Exlusion.
Exlusion. Aldershot: Ashgate.
McDonald, F. and J. Nix (2005). Chaos at the Crossroads. Dublin: Gandon.
Gandon.
Ray, L. J. (2002). Crossing Borders? Sociology, Globalization and
and Immobility. Sociological Research
Online, 7 (3).
Urry,
Urry, J. (2000). Sociology Beyond Societies. London: Routledge.
Routledge.
Urry,
Urry, J. (2004) ‘The ‘System‘
System‘ of Automobility‘
Automobility‘, Theory, Culture and Society, 21 (4/5): 25–
25–39.
Urry,
Urry, J. (2007). Mobilities.
Mobilities. Cambridge: Polity.
Wickham,
Wickham, J. (2006). Gridlock: Dublin’
Dublin’s Transport Crisis and the Future of the City. Dublin: Tasc in
association with New Island.
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 What are the main barriers to achieving
sustainable consumption?
 How do they relate to the economic and sociocultural functions of consumption in modern
society?
52