Scaling behaviour change for a 1.5-degree world: challenges and opportunities

IF 4.6 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES Global Sustainability Pub Date : 2021-09-28 DOI:10.1017/sus.2021.23
P. Newell, M. Twena, Freddie Daley
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引用次数: 27

Abstract

Non-technical summary Scaling sustainable behaviour change means addressing politics, power and social justice to tackle the uneven distribution of responsibility and agency for climate action, within and between societies. This requires a holistic understanding of behaviour that bridges the ‘individual’ and ‘systemic’, and acknowledges the need for absolute emissions reductions, especially by high-consuming groups, and in key ‘hotspots’ of polluting activity, namely, travel, diet and housing. It counters the dominant focus on individuals and households, in favour of a differentiated, but collective approach, driven by bold climate governance and social mobilisation to reorient institutions and behaviour towards just transitions, sufficiency and wellbeing. Technical summary Sustainable behaviour change has been rising up the climate policy agenda as it becomes increasingly clear that far-reaching changes in lifestyles will be required, alongside shifts in policy, service provision and technological innovation, if we are to avoid dangerous levels of global heating. In this paper, we review different approaches to behaviour change from economics, psychology, sociology and political economy, to explore the neglected question of scalability, and identify critical points of leverage that challenge the dominant emphasis on individual responsibility. Although politically contentious and challenging to implement, in order to achieve the ambitious target of keeping warming below 1.5 degrees, we propose urgent structural interventions are necessary at all points within an ecosystem of transformation, and highlight five key spheres for action: a ‘strong’ sustainability pathway; pursuing just transitions (via changes to work, income and infrastructure); rebalancing political institutions to expand spaces for citizens vis-à-vis elite incumbents; focusing on high polluting actors and activities; and supporting social mobilisation. We call for a move away from linear and ‘shallow’ understandings of behaviour change, dominated by traditional behavioural and mainstreaming approaches, towards a ‘deep’, contextualised and dynamic view of scaling as a transformative process of multiple feedbacks and learning loops between individuals and systems, engaged in a mutually reinforcing ‘spiral of sustainability’. Social media summary box Scaling behaviour change means addressing power and politics: challenging polluter elites and providing affordable and sustainable services for all.
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1.5度世界的行为变化:挑战与机遇
扩大可持续行为改变的规模意味着解决政治、权力和社会正义问题,以解决社会内部和社会之间气候行动责任和机构分配不均的问题。这需要对“个人”和“系统”行为的整体理解,并承认绝对减排的必要性,特别是高消费群体,以及污染活动的关键“热点”,即旅行、饮食和住房。它反对对个人和家庭的主要关注,支持在大胆的气候治理和社会动员的推动下,采取差异化但集体的方法,重新调整制度和行为,以实现公正的过渡、充足和福祉。可持续的行为改变已经上升到气候政策议程上,因为越来越明显的是,如果我们要避免全球变暖的危险水平,就需要在政策、服务提供和技术创新的同时,对生活方式进行深远的改变。在本文中,我们回顾了从经济学,心理学,社会学和政治经济学中不同的行为改变方法,以探索被忽视的可扩展性问题,并确定了挑战个人责任主导地位的杠杆关键点。尽管在政治上存在争议且难以实施,但为了实现将升温控制在1.5度以下的宏伟目标,我们建议在转型生态系统的所有点上都有必要采取紧急结构性干预措施,并强调了五个关键行动领域:“强有力的”可持续发展途径;追求公正的转型(通过改变工作、收入和基础设施);重新平衡政治制度,扩大公民相对于-à-vis精英现任者的空间;重点关注高污染行为者和活动;支持社会动员。我们呼吁摆脱对行为变化的线性和“肤浅”理解(由传统的行为和主流方法主导),转向将规模化视为个体和系统之间多重反馈和学习循环的变革过程的“深入”、情境化和动态的观点,参与相互加强的“可持续性螺旋”。扩大行为改变意味着解决权力和政治问题:挑战污染者精英,为所有人提供负担得起的可持续服务。
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来源期刊
Global Sustainability
Global Sustainability Environmental Science-Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
CiteScore
10.90
自引率
3.60%
发文量
19
审稿时长
17 weeks
期刊最新文献
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