Transitions to Sustainable Consumption

Achieving sustainable living is an urgent and complex challenge, requiring new ways of thinking and collaborating. CONSENSUS, an Irish research project, is exploring how we could radically transform our daily activities, now and into the future - to maintain our wellbeing and the planet's. First, we surveyed fifteen hundred people across the island of Ireland. Most were concerned about environmental issues and over half said they wanted to lead more eco-friendly lives. Except their concern isn't being translated into action. Why is this? One reason is that we often feel 'locked-in' to our daily routines; constrained by technologies, infrastructures and social expectations that don't prioritize sustainability. The good news is that these can change over time. CONSENSUS explored how we could shape these forces to make our eating, washing, heating and mobility practices more sustainable. For example, our mobility research evaluated what combinations of education, infrastructure, and incentives can promote sustainable commuting; and if restructuring working arrangements can support a reduction in travel. Creative visioning processes, involving change-makers from business, policy and the public, were used to design innovations for sustainable eating, washing and heating practices. The result? Future scenarios and long-term action plans with proposals for new technologies, policies and education that together could transform our daily practices. By thinking about the wider system that shapes the way we live, CONSENSUS identified a host of opportunities to make radical transitions towards sustainable consumption.