The role of sustainable consumption in achieving

the Sustainable Development Goals

Lucia A. Reisch

Copenhagen Business School / C-BIG / CBS Sustainability

Invited talk at the Danish Ethical Trade Initiative Conference 2019:

“Hope ahead – Denmark as SDG pioneer through ethical trade”

Copenhagen, May 2 2019

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What do we talk about?

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Definition of „Sustainable consumption“

“The use of services and related products, which respond to basic needs and bring a better quality of life while minimising the use of natural resources and toxic materials as well as the emissions of waste and pollutants over the life cycle of the service or product so as not to jeopardise the needs of future generation.” (UN SDG)

Source: Worldmapper.org

Ecological Footprint

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https://sdg-tracker.org/sustainable-consumption-production

Source: Peter Menzel „What I eat around the world“

Systems of (food) consumption

Definition of „Sustainable consumption“

“The use of services and related products, which respond to basic needs and bring a better quality of life while minimising the use of natural resources and toxic materials as well as the emissions of waste and pollutants over the life cycle of the service or product so as not to jeopardise the needs of future generation.” (UN SDG)

„Consumption that simultanuously optimizes the

environmental, social, cultural and economic consequences

of the acquisition, use and disposition of goods and services

in order to meet the needs of current and future generations“

ChallengesConsumption as driver and problem

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We miss the Paris (COP 21) climate goals• 60% increase in carbon footprints of major cities worldwide (when using consumption-

based accounting) (C40 2018)

Rebound effects• Relative decoupling BUT no absolute decoupling

International labour standards and human rights under pressure• E.g. conflict minerals

Rise of the global middle class (expanded by 140 Mio annually)• Equity of carbon budgets? Climate migration?

SC is fundamentally a problem of inequality – and inequality prevails

Policies and innovations focusing on invidividual behaviours are good – but not enough

Policies and innovations fostering systemic change are needed

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Policies for sustainable consumption& production

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Action Plan for Sustainable Consumption

sufficiency

efficiency

consistency (cradle to cradle/ circular economy

collaborative consumption / Sharing Economy

prosumerism and self-production

Public procurement (social and environmental

standards)

Regulation and bans

Financial (dis)incentives

Empowerment

Nudges for Good

Partnerships

Sustainable consumption & production – systemic change

Distributed responsibility in actor coalitions (partnerships across sectors – e.g. food waste)

Infrastructures for sustainable mobility (choice architecture – e.g. active transport strategy)

Regulation, standards (e.g. ILO standards)

Prices: getting the prices right (e.g. CO2 tax, CO2 offsetting)

Changing cultural conventions and meanings (What is a status good? What is an agreeable temperature? What means “quality” of meat, textiles, investments?)

Community equity (public private ownerships, B-corporations, multi-stakeholder cooperatives)

Agencies focused on innovation for SC (market entry of sustainable start-ups, e.g. bioeconomy)

Living labs and experimental enterprise zones (e.g. working time, basic income)

Promising partnerships in value chains

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What gives me hope?

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Changing values

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2/3 of all households own a

smartphone

Instant feedback

Social norms & Social comparison

Simple, easy, intuitive & fun

Enlightened ICT in the service of sustainability

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Successful transformations (of whole industries) areunderway

Politicians like ---

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