Pub Date : 2022-02-10DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2022.2029041
Soumyajit Bhar, S. Lele, Narasimha D. Rao
Abstract Concern about the environmental impacts of consumption has drawn research attention to the drivers of conspicuous and luxury (C/L) consumption. Given the prevailing patterns of overconsumption, most studies to date have focused on countries in the global North. However, an emerging high-consuming middle and upper class in nations such as India and Brazil makes it imperative to extend the study of C/L consumption to these contexts. Research that does exist pertaining to India has predominantly focused only on the role of social identity in driving consumption growth among certain groups. Our study proposes a broader conceptual framework, incorporating a variety of possible factors and applying multivariate statistical analysis to household-expenditure data from the India Human Development Survey. We examine how C/L consumption expenditure is correlated not just with the economic ability to consume (income or wealth) but also with potential socio-psychological drivers and moderators. The results show that while the economic ability to consume (income or its proxy) is an enabling factor, mass-media exposure and social network activity appear to influence C/L consumption positively. Education and caste have more mixed relationships with consumption, and interaction effects between these two variables and economic ability to consume are also significant. The results highlight the importance of socio-psychological factors in shaping consumption decisions beyond the enabling role of income and wealth. Improving understanding of this broader set of factors, as well as their interaction effects, is particularly salient for devising better policies for transitioning toward more sustainable consumption patterns in a large developing country such as India.
{"title":"Beyond income: correlates of conspicuous and luxury consumption in India","authors":"Soumyajit Bhar, S. Lele, Narasimha D. Rao","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2022.2029041","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2029041","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Concern about the environmental impacts of consumption has drawn research attention to the drivers of conspicuous and luxury (C/L) consumption. Given the prevailing patterns of overconsumption, most studies to date have focused on countries in the global North. However, an emerging high-consuming middle and upper class in nations such as India and Brazil makes it imperative to extend the study of C/L consumption to these contexts. Research that does exist pertaining to India has predominantly focused only on the role of social identity in driving consumption growth among certain groups. Our study proposes a broader conceptual framework, incorporating a variety of possible factors and applying multivariate statistical analysis to household-expenditure data from the India Human Development Survey. We examine how C/L consumption expenditure is correlated not just with the economic ability to consume (income or wealth) but also with potential socio-psychological drivers and moderators. The results show that while the economic ability to consume (income or its proxy) is an enabling factor, mass-media exposure and social network activity appear to influence C/L consumption positively. Education and caste have more mixed relationships with consumption, and interaction effects between these two variables and economic ability to consume are also significant. The results highlight the importance of socio-psychological factors in shaping consumption decisions beyond the enabling role of income and wealth. Improving understanding of this broader set of factors, as well as their interaction effects, is particularly salient for devising better policies for transitioning toward more sustainable consumption patterns in a large developing country such as India.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82150220","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-10DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2022.2030115
Tuula Helne, Tuuli Hirvilammi
Abstract Meeting human needs while respecting ecological limits is one of the daunting tasks of the sustainability transformation. To succeed in it, it is vital to discuss, to reconstruct, and to deconstruct the dominant discourse on well-being. How young people understand well-being is a particularly important issue since they are the prospective harbingers of change. However, the public discourse on youth is often problem-oriented, especially regarding youth not in employment or education. In this article, the gaze is directed at one such group. Group-interview data of young unemployed Finnish adults are analyzed to explore how they conceptualize well-being and how this understanding relates to the sustainability transformation. We interpret the data with the help of a need-based theory of sustainable, multidimensional, and relational well-being (the Having-Doing-Loving-Being framework). The study demonstrates that the young adults’ discourse is compatible with the framework, and differs distinctly from the prevailing policy discourse on well-being by giving far less weight to monetary aspects, and by its emphasis on meaningfulness, ethical activities, and connectedness with nature. The article concludes with implications for the sustainability transformation regarding consumption, employment policies, social and health services, biodiversity and conservation, positive sustainability, and the theory of sustainable well-being.
{"title":"Balancing needs: young unemployed Finnish adults’ discourse on well-being and its relation to the sustainability transformation","authors":"Tuula Helne, Tuuli Hirvilammi","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2022.2030115","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2030115","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Meeting human needs while respecting ecological limits is one of the daunting tasks of the sustainability transformation. To succeed in it, it is vital to discuss, to reconstruct, and to deconstruct the dominant discourse on well-being. How young people understand well-being is a particularly important issue since they are the prospective harbingers of change. However, the public discourse on youth is often problem-oriented, especially regarding youth not in employment or education. In this article, the gaze is directed at one such group. Group-interview data of young unemployed Finnish adults are analyzed to explore how they conceptualize well-being and how this understanding relates to the sustainability transformation. We interpret the data with the help of a need-based theory of sustainable, multidimensional, and relational well-being (the Having-Doing-Loving-Being framework). The study demonstrates that the young adults’ discourse is compatible with the framework, and differs distinctly from the prevailing policy discourse on well-being by giving far less weight to monetary aspects, and by its emphasis on meaningfulness, ethical activities, and connectedness with nature. The article concludes with implications for the sustainability transformation regarding consumption, employment policies, social and health services, biodiversity and conservation, positive sustainability, and the theory of sustainable well-being.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90561916","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-09DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2022.2027122
E. Eppinger
Abstract A major environmental issue of the rise in garment production is a steep increase of textile waste. At the same time, recycling technologies appear to be promising avenues for sustainability transitions of the fashion industry. This article examines the chances and challenges of scaling recycling technologies for textiles and considers the collection and sorting processes as well as the actual reuse. Drawing on case studies and expert interviews, the results indicate current obstacles and opportunities for accelerating diffusion of recycling technologies. Various initiatives are promising, however industry structures, garment designs, and business models need to be re-orientated and re-aligned to accelerate these recycling concepts. Applying the greenwashing notion that acknowledges co-creation by producers and consumers, the article critically argues that the focus on recycled polyester bottles for garments distorts incentives to improve other recycling technologies and masks the true cost of textile-waste recycling. Instead, fashion-brand companies and retailers should leverage their market power to foster sustainability standards in the global recycling industry.
{"title":"Recycling technologies for enabling sustainability transitions of the fashion industry: status quo and avenues for increasing post-consumer waste recycling","authors":"E. Eppinger","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2022.2027122","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2027122","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract A major environmental issue of the rise in garment production is a steep increase of textile waste. At the same time, recycling technologies appear to be promising avenues for sustainability transitions of the fashion industry. This article examines the chances and challenges of scaling recycling technologies for textiles and considers the collection and sorting processes as well as the actual reuse. Drawing on case studies and expert interviews, the results indicate current obstacles and opportunities for accelerating diffusion of recycling technologies. Various initiatives are promising, however industry structures, garment designs, and business models need to be re-orientated and re-aligned to accelerate these recycling concepts. Applying the greenwashing notion that acknowledges co-creation by producers and consumers, the article critically argues that the focus on recycled polyester bottles for garments distorts incentives to improve other recycling technologies and masks the true cost of textile-waste recycling. Instead, fashion-brand companies and retailers should leverage their market power to foster sustainability standards in the global recycling industry.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73053502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-09DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2022.2027675
K. Fletcher
Abstract This Brief Report argues for approaching fashion sustainability as a whole systems issue and outlines some of the systems insights already uncovered. It also calls out the logic of economic growth as a key factor that limits the prospects for whole sector change. I propose an alternative logic – Earth Logic – which prioritizes Earth and all its species, including humans as a way to diversify and vivify fashion activity within planetary limits. The fashion territory cultivated by this changed logic is unfolding already today and will continue to do so, with roles for existing and entirely new actors, garments, and ways of organizing clothing, albeit configured differently with altered priorities.
{"title":"Perspectives: earth rising","authors":"K. Fletcher","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2022.2027675","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2027675","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This Brief Report argues for approaching fashion sustainability as a whole systems issue and outlines some of the systems insights already uncovered. It also calls out the logic of economic growth as a key factor that limits the prospects for whole sector change. I propose an alternative logic – Earth Logic – which prioritizes Earth and all its species, including humans as a way to diversify and vivify fashion activity within planetary limits. The fashion territory cultivated by this changed logic is unfolding already today and will continue to do so, with roles for existing and entirely new actors, garments, and ways of organizing clothing, albeit configured differently with altered priorities.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84650825","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-07DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2022.2027121
I. Auwalin, Rumayya, Faradilla Rahma Sari, Saskia Rizqina Maulida
Abstract This study aims to examine the impact of persuasive communication as a behavioral change intervention for the pro-circular behavior of restaurant and retail business actors. The Pro-Circular Change Model (P-CCM) with an extended formulation of the Theory of Planned Behavior is used as the underlying framework. In the analysis, we employ a paired t-test to capture the differences before and after the intervention. We find evidence that behavioral change interventions are relatively effective in altering how individuals view the efforts needed to implement features of a pro-circular economy in their business. We also find that persuasive communication is relatively effective in promoting public awareness about current environmental issues. However, we find no significant impact on behavioral intention to implement circular economy strategies.
{"title":"Applying the Pro-Circular change model to restaurant and retail businesses’ preferences for circular economy: evidence from Indonesia","authors":"I. Auwalin, Rumayya, Faradilla Rahma Sari, Saskia Rizqina Maulida","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2022.2027121","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2027121","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study aims to examine the impact of persuasive communication as a behavioral change intervention for the pro-circular behavior of restaurant and retail business actors. The Pro-Circular Change Model (P-CCM) with an extended formulation of the Theory of Planned Behavior is used as the underlying framework. In the analysis, we employ a paired t-test to capture the differences before and after the intervention. We find evidence that behavioral change interventions are relatively effective in altering how individuals view the efforts needed to implement features of a pro-circular economy in their business. We also find that persuasive communication is relatively effective in promoting public awareness about current environmental issues. However, we find no significant impact on behavioral intention to implement circular economy strategies.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86680003","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-01-31DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2021.2022880
Hamdi A. Bashir, U. Ojiako, S. Haridy, M. Shamsuzzaman, Rana Musa
Abstract Despite significant worldwide growth in ISO 14001 standard adoption by construction firms, limited research exists on issues related to the implementation of environmentally sustainable practices and their associations with ISO 14001 certification. This article reports the results of an empirical study examining the implementation of environmentally sustainable practices, the link between their usage frequencies and ISO 14001 standard adoption, and the association between having this standard and firm size. The methodological approach involved interviews followed by a structured questionnaire to collect data from 259 construction firms in the United Arab Emirates. The results indicate that (1) environmentally sustainable practices have not been used extensively and those that have been implemented have varying usage frequencies, (2) adoption of the standard has been accompanied by partial improvement in the usage frequencies of the practices, and (3) there is no association between firm size and adoption of the standard. These findings can serve as a guide for policymakers as well as project managers in construction firms that are interested in implementing environmentally sustainable practices and those that are planning to invest in ISO 14001 certification.
{"title":"Implementation of environmentally sustainable practices and their association with ISO 14001 certification in the construction industry of the United Arab Emirates","authors":"Hamdi A. Bashir, U. Ojiako, S. Haridy, M. Shamsuzzaman, Rana Musa","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2021.2022880","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2021.2022880","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Despite significant worldwide growth in ISO 14001 standard adoption by construction firms, limited research exists on issues related to the implementation of environmentally sustainable practices and their associations with ISO 14001 certification. This article reports the results of an empirical study examining the implementation of environmentally sustainable practices, the link between their usage frequencies and ISO 14001 standard adoption, and the association between having this standard and firm size. The methodological approach involved interviews followed by a structured questionnaire to collect data from 259 construction firms in the United Arab Emirates. The results indicate that (1) environmentally sustainable practices have not been used extensively and those that have been implemented have varying usage frequencies, (2) adoption of the standard has been accompanied by partial improvement in the usage frequencies of the practices, and (3) there is no association between firm size and adoption of the standard. These findings can serve as a guide for policymakers as well as project managers in construction firms that are interested in implementing environmentally sustainable practices and those that are planning to invest in ISO 14001 certification.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87176642","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-01-30DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2021.2013050
C. Hoolohan, S. Wertheim-Heck, Fanny Devaux, L. Domaneschi, S. Dubuisson-Quellier, Martina Schäfer, U. Wethal
Abstract COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruption to previously settled everyday routines, prompting a period of forced experimentation as people have adjusted to rapid changes in their private and working lives. For discussions regarding consumption, this period of experimentation has been interesting, as the apparent instability has disturbed the ongoing trajectory of consumption practices, and with it has created possibilities for a transition toward sustainability. In this article, we examine food practices (e.g., food shopping, preparation, and eating) in seven countries (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, UK, and Vietnam) to assess what we can learn to accelerate transitions toward sustainable consumption. Grounded in a practice theoretical approach, our empirical analysis shows how disruption of everyday routines has generated socio-materially bounded experimentation. We demonstrate commonalities across contexts in how lockdown measures have restricted the performance of previously taken-for-granted practices. We also show diversity in experimentation as food consumption is entangled in other everyday practices. Our study, on one hand, portrays how the adaptation of food practices allows disruption to be managed, demonstrating creativity in working within and around restrictions to continue to provide services for everyday life. On the other hand, we reveal that the capacity of experimentation is not evenly distributed among people and this variation helps in identifying the wider socio-material conditions that constrain and enable opportunities for readjustment. Understanding disparities that affect experimentation (e.g., integration of food practices with work and caring practices) is informative when thinking about how to stimulate sustainability transformations in food practices and provides critical reflections on strategies to enable sustainable consumption.
{"title":"COVID-19 and socio-materially bounded experimentation in food practices: insights from seven countries","authors":"C. Hoolohan, S. Wertheim-Heck, Fanny Devaux, L. Domaneschi, S. Dubuisson-Quellier, Martina Schäfer, U. Wethal","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2021.2013050","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2021.2013050","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruption to previously settled everyday routines, prompting a period of forced experimentation as people have adjusted to rapid changes in their private and working lives. For discussions regarding consumption, this period of experimentation has been interesting, as the apparent instability has disturbed the ongoing trajectory of consumption practices, and with it has created possibilities for a transition toward sustainability. In this article, we examine food practices (e.g., food shopping, preparation, and eating) in seven countries (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, UK, and Vietnam) to assess what we can learn to accelerate transitions toward sustainable consumption. Grounded in a practice theoretical approach, our empirical analysis shows how disruption of everyday routines has generated socio-materially bounded experimentation. We demonstrate commonalities across contexts in how lockdown measures have restricted the performance of previously taken-for-granted practices. We also show diversity in experimentation as food consumption is entangled in other everyday practices. Our study, on one hand, portrays how the adaptation of food practices allows disruption to be managed, demonstrating creativity in working within and around restrictions to continue to provide services for everyday life. On the other hand, we reveal that the capacity of experimentation is not evenly distributed among people and this variation helps in identifying the wider socio-material conditions that constrain and enable opportunities for readjustment. Understanding disparities that affect experimentation (e.g., integration of food practices with work and caring practices) is informative when thinking about how to stimulate sustainability transformations in food practices and provides critical reflections on strategies to enable sustainable consumption.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76703079","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract There has to date been limited research on the economic valuation of local outdoor recreational services to inform policy and practice. This study attempts to fill this gap by estimating the annual recreational value of Tabor Mountain Recreational Park, an open-access recreational site in Hawassa City (also known as Awassa City), Ethiopia. This study employs single-bounded dichotomous choice and open-ended elicitation methods using primary and secondary data collected from 260 urban residents during June–August 2019. A complementary assessment of the determinants of local visitors’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) is also carried out. Descriptive statistics and a binary logistic regression model were used to analyze the survey data. Overall, 87% and 98% of the respondents were willing to accept the initial bid value and to give non-zero maximum WTP, respectively. On average, a local resident makes/intends to make 2.57 visits per month paying a mean entrance fee of ETB 28.33 per visit, which represents approximately ETB 93,498,000 per year. Furthermore, average monthly income and the afternoon visiting-time preference of local visitors had a positive effect on individuals’ WTP. Initial bid value, frequency of visits per month, number of dependent families, and age of local visitors had a negative effect on WTP. The substantial annual local recreational value estimate of Tabor Mountain Park reveals the potential of local financing alternatives for sustainable development and management of environmental resources in similar settings.
{"title":"The contribution of local outdoor recreational services to the sustainable management of environmental resources: the case of Tabor Mountain Recreational Park in Hawassa City, Ethiopia","authors":"M. Mellaku, Yoseph Melka, Bamlaku Ayenew, Tirusew Teshale Taye, Abera Tilahun","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2021.2023291","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2021.2023291","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract There has to date been limited research on the economic valuation of local outdoor recreational services to inform policy and practice. This study attempts to fill this gap by estimating the annual recreational value of Tabor Mountain Recreational Park, an open-access recreational site in Hawassa City (also known as Awassa City), Ethiopia. This study employs single-bounded dichotomous choice and open-ended elicitation methods using primary and secondary data collected from 260 urban residents during June–August 2019. A complementary assessment of the determinants of local visitors’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) is also carried out. Descriptive statistics and a binary logistic regression model were used to analyze the survey data. Overall, 87% and 98% of the respondents were willing to accept the initial bid value and to give non-zero maximum WTP, respectively. On average, a local resident makes/intends to make 2.57 visits per month paying a mean entrance fee of ETB 28.33 per visit, which represents approximately ETB 93,498,000 per year. Furthermore, average monthly income and the afternoon visiting-time preference of local visitors had a positive effect on individuals’ WTP. Initial bid value, frequency of visits per month, number of dependent families, and age of local visitors had a negative effect on WTP. The substantial annual local recreational value estimate of Tabor Mountain Park reveals the potential of local financing alternatives for sustainable development and management of environmental resources in similar settings.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82547203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-01-21DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2021.2023292
Ola Persson, J. Larsson, Jonas Nässén
Abstract Working time reduction (WTR) is a policy that could improve quality of life while reducing environmental impacts. However, WTR coupled with a salary reduction may benefit only higher-income earners and increase social inequalities. Against this background, we analyze how the motivations for and the socioecological outcomes from working less vary across different socioeconomic groups. The analysis is based on a survey conducted among municipal employees under full-time contracts who utilized the City of Gothenburg’s “right to part-time” policy. We find that working less improved quality of life not only for higher-income groups but also for lower-income groups through gains in time affluence, energy, health, and time spent on strengthening social ties. However, three negative effects emerged. First, WTR lead to increased work intensification, particularly among higher-income earners. Second, concerns regarding making ends meet and future retirement income were particularly salient issues among lower-income earners. Finally, WTR to cope with unfavorable working conditions was a much more common motivation among manual workers with lower salaries. We conclude that WTR can be a viable option across a broader range of socioeconomic groups than previously assumed but that it is nevertheless important to consider the effects on social inequality when designing WTR policies.
{"title":"Working less by choice: what are the benefits and hardships?","authors":"Ola Persson, J. Larsson, Jonas Nässén","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2021.2023292","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2021.2023292","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Working time reduction (WTR) is a policy that could improve quality of life while reducing environmental impacts. However, WTR coupled with a salary reduction may benefit only higher-income earners and increase social inequalities. Against this background, we analyze how the motivations for and the socioecological outcomes from working less vary across different socioeconomic groups. The analysis is based on a survey conducted among municipal employees under full-time contracts who utilized the City of Gothenburg’s “right to part-time” policy. We find that working less improved quality of life not only for higher-income groups but also for lower-income groups through gains in time affluence, energy, health, and time spent on strengthening social ties. However, three negative effects emerged. First, WTR lead to increased work intensification, particularly among higher-income earners. Second, concerns regarding making ends meet and future retirement income were particularly salient issues among lower-income earners. Finally, WTR to cope with unfavorable working conditions was a much more common motivation among manual workers with lower salaries. We conclude that WTR can be a viable option across a broader range of socioeconomic groups than previously assumed but that it is nevertheless important to consider the effects on social inequality when designing WTR policies.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82259873","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-01-13DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2021.2021688
Somjai Nupueng, P. Oosterveer, A. Mol
Abstract Private actors are essential partners in the sustainability governance of commodity-supply chains such as palm oil. However, their actual contribution to promoting sustainability is also contested. This article assesses the role of private actors in the governance of the palm oil-supply chain in Thailand by comparing supply-chain actors that are certified with the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards and non-certified supply-chain actors. The comparison entails input supply and production, collection and sales, processing and storage, and distribution. Building on the concept of (global) value chains, we examine the following governance dimensions in our comparison: the management of contracts and agreements, the role of trust in transactions, the relative power of various actors, and the control over smallholder farmers’ access to the market. Primary data were collected in the Surat Thani and Krabi Provinces in southern Thailand. We found that the RSPO-certified palm-oil chain was shorter, more transparent, and that farmers received higher prices than the non-RSPO-certified chains.
{"title":"Governing sustainability in the Thai palm oil-supply chain: the role of private actors","authors":"Somjai Nupueng, P. Oosterveer, A. Mol","doi":"10.1080/15487733.2021.2021688","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2021.2021688","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Private actors are essential partners in the sustainability governance of commodity-supply chains such as palm oil. However, their actual contribution to promoting sustainability is also contested. This article assesses the role of private actors in the governance of the palm oil-supply chain in Thailand by comparing supply-chain actors that are certified with the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards and non-certified supply-chain actors. The comparison entails input supply and production, collection and sales, processing and storage, and distribution. Building on the concept of (global) value chains, we examine the following governance dimensions in our comparison: the management of contracts and agreements, the role of trust in transactions, the relative power of various actors, and the control over smallholder farmers’ access to the market. Primary data were collected in the Surat Thani and Krabi Provinces in southern Thailand. We found that the RSPO-certified palm-oil chain was shorter, more transparent, and that farmers received higher prices than the non-RSPO-certified chains.","PeriodicalId":35192,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73236517","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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