From efficiency to sufficiency: a new article summarizes the results from the first four years of Mistra Sustainable Consumption.

The research program Mistra Sustainable Consumption is now in its eighth year. A recent article summarizes the findings from the program’s first four years. The program involves around 20 researchers and societal partners who explore how sustainable consumption can become more mainstream.

During the first phase, the focus was on sustainable practices in relation to food, furnishing, and travel, and how more sustainable consumption in these areas can be promoted through business, civil society, and public policy.

Systemic level
A key takeaway is the need to move responsibility from individuals to the systemic level. If Swedes were to shift to more sustainable products and services already available on the market, emissions from private consumption could decrease by up to 40%. However, such a shift requires more than just providing information—it demands stronger measures from both businesses and policymakers.

Moreover, to go beyond a 40% reduction and reach the set climate and environmental goals, it is not enough to simply shift to more sustainable  products. In some areas, consumption volumes also need to decrease, highlighting the role of sufficiency-based strategies. The article however highlights how little has been implemented in practice, in spite of the breadth of proposed strategies and measures for more profound sustainable transformations.
There is no shortage of ideas. When we have studied what is being done, and what could be done, in the spheres of business, civil society and the public sector we see that there is an abundance of proposals, says Karin Bradley, Professor at the Department of Urban Planning and Environment and one of the article’s authors.

Quality of life
The article further highlights the importance of exploring multiple pathways that integrate both sufficiency and efficiency while considering social justice and quality of life.
–  There is sometimes a tendency to focus on only one future plan, but it is crucial to work with multiple future scenarios. These should reflect different shifts in societal contexts and explore how to achieve environmental and social goals in diverse developments, explains Åsa Svenfelt, Senior Lecturer at Linköping University and co-author of the article.

Julia Peltola

READ THE ARTICLE
Read the full article “Mainstreaming sustainable consumption: Lessons learned from a four-year research program”, published in Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy here.

CONTACT
Karin Bradley
Professor, Department of Urban Planning and Environment, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm
karin.bradley@abe.kth.se
+46709186088

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