Learning to (not quite) buy nothing: Digital gift economies and household innovations reducing consumption

Abstract

The daunting task of swiftly transitioning to sustainable modes of living presents a formidable challenge, particularly at individual and household levels, where entrenched consumption and disposal systems exhibit strong path dependency. This research investigates how individuals and households can contribute to sustainability transitions through grassroots innovations. Specifically, we ask: How do digital gift economies facilitate changes in household consumption practices and contribute to broader sustainability transitions? To address this question, we present an instructional case study of the Buy Nothing Project (BNP), a globally scaled yet locally focused digital gift economy, as a grassroots innovation enabling citizen agency within domestic spaces. BNP is a socio-technical network of hyperlocal, digital gift-giving groups that advocate for community reliance and generosity to reduce household consumption and waste and build neighbourhood bonds. Our analysis reveals that BNP's most revolutionary aspect lies in the embedded everyday sustainability practices it facilitates, particularly the social learning to reduce consumption at individual, household, and community levels through group participation and ongoing membership. We argue that this grassroots innovation enables citizen agency within domestic spaces, contributing significantly to sustainability transitions. Paradoxically, the ordinariness of these practices, combined with the gendered composition of members and that acquiring and disposing of household goods is usually considered “women's work”, may hinder recognition of BNP's potential as a powerful catalyst for sustainable transitions. This study contributes to our understanding of how digital platforms can support household-level innovations in sustainability practices and highlights the importance of recognising and valuing diverse forms of contribution to sustainability transitions.