Sustainable Consumption and Lifestyles:

Key to achieving the SDGs

UN Environment Consumption and Production Unit

About UNEPEstablished in 1972. The voice for the environment within the United Nations system. Its headquarters are in Nairobi, Kenya. UNEP acts as a catalyst, advocate, educator and facilitator to promote the wise use and sustainable development of the global environment.

Role• Assessing global, regional and national environmental conditions and trends

• Developing international and national environmental instruments

• Strengthening institutions for the wise management of the environment

• Facilitating the transfer of knowledge and technology for sustainable development; and

• Encouraging new partnerships and mind-sets within civil society and the private sector.

Mission"To provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations."

UN Environment

2. What can and is being done in the

policy context?

1. Sustainable Development:

What’s the Problem?

3. What is the private

sector doing?

4. How can the power of consumers

be harnessed for change?

Sustainable Consumption and

Production: the Key to change

Business as usual is not an option

Environment 101:

the sustainable development compass

1. Sustainable Development: What’s the problem?

env Impact

(climate,

biodiversity, habitat,

resource scarcity,

health) Population Affluence Technology

Original IPAT equation

LifestyleResource

efficiency

Eco-intensity

of resources

Sustainable

Consumption &

Production (SCP)

OPPORTUNITIES

The World’s Priorities*

• Basic education for all $12.5 Billion

• Cosmetics in US $33.3 Billion

• Water and sanitation for all $10 Billion

• Ice Cream in Europe $11 Billion

• Reproductive health for all woman $12 Billion

• Perfumes in Europe and USA $12 Billion

• Basic health and nutrition $13 Billion

• Pet foods in Europe and the US $17 Billion

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• Business entertainment in Japan $35 Billion

• Cigarettes in Europe $50 Billion

• Alcoholic drinks in Europe $105 Billion

• Narcotics in the world $400 Billion

• Military spending in the world $780 Billion

*UNDP Human Development Report, 1998

Sustainable resource

management

Design for sustainability

D4S

Cleaner production &

Resource Efficiency

Sustainable transport

Eco-labellingand

certification

Sustainable procurement

Sustainable marketing

Sustainable lifestyles

Waste Management

Applying

Life-cycle

Thinking

Sustainable Consumption and Production

From traditional flow to Life cycle thinking

LCA transforms data on products and

processes into insights and enables

businesses to implement the most

profitable and high impact

sustainability initiatives.

End of life

Consumer

use

Distribution and retail

Production

The traditional flow of materials and products

. . .

Raw material

s

Myths about Sustainable Consumption

1. Sustainable Consumption

contradicts poverty eradication

2. Informed consumers will

consume sustainably

3. Economic growth leads to

improved wellbeing

4. Only small environmental

actions lead to big changes

A Global Mandate for SCP

2. What can and is being done in the policy context?

Now Goal 12 of the Sustainable Development Goals in the Post-2015 Development Agenda

Agenda 21, Rio de Janeiro,

1992

Johannesburg Plan of Implementation

(JPOI), 2002

Marrakech Process, 2003-11

Rio +20, 2012

“The major cause of the continued deterioration of the global environment are the unsustainable patterns of consumption and production…”

“SCP is one of the overarching objectives of, and essential requirements for, sustainable development.”

“Encourage and promote the development of a 10-year framework of programmes (10YFP) ..to.. shift towards SCP patterns….” (JPOI, 2002)

A/CONF.216/5 (paragraph 226 – “The Future We

Want”). 10YFP adopted

SDGs and Post-2015

A global framework adopted by Heads of State at Rio+20 for a international cooperation to shift towards sustainable consumption

and production (SCP) patterns in developed and developing countries.

We envisage a world in which every country enjoys sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all. A world in which consumption and production patterns and use of all natural resources –

from air to land, from rivers, lakes and aquifers to oceans and seas - are sustainable

(Preamble)

Goal 12Ensure sustainable consumption and

production patterns

12.1 Implement the 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and

production, all countries taking action, with developed countries taking the lead, taking

into account the development and capabilities of developing countries

Transforming our world2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

10YFP main objectives

Accelerate the shift

towards SCP in all

countries by supporting

regional and national

policies and initiatives

Increase RE and decouple economic growth from

environmental degradation, creating decent jobs and

contributing to poverty eradication and shared

prosperity

Support capacity-building and facilitate access to financial and technical assistance for developing countries,to implement SCP activities at all levels

Serve as an information and

knowledge sharingplatform on SCP to enable

all stakeholders to exchange policies, tools, initiatives and

best practices, enhancing cooperation

10YFP Programmes are umbrellas, bringing actors together for collective impact, delivering capacity building, primarily at national and regional levels

10YFP Programmes

Sustainable Food

System

Policies for Sustainable Consumption

1. Shifting market practices: promoting

sustainable consumption from the supply side

2. Policy Integration for Sustainable Consumption

3. Protecting Traditional Sustainable Consumption

Practices

4. Using economic measures to shape

consumption

5. Shifting the Social Context around Consumer

Behaviour

Policies for Sustainable Consumption

SWITCH Initiatives NATIONAL SCP PLANS

SPECIFIC POLICIES :

Sustainable Public Procurement

Consumer Product Information

Private sector engagement is integral to

combat poverty, environmental degradation,

and inequality

3. Private Sector engagement

Companies can contribute directly to

and indirectly to many other through inclusive principles

RISKS• Higher operational costs and supply chain disruption• Shifting production and transportation patterns to adapt to local conditions• Public pressure for greater transparency• Regulatory and fiscal instruments increasingly complex

OPPORTUNITIES• Market shift towards ‘greener’ production in a holistic supply chain– water-efficient technology,

green plastics and chemistry, sustainable infrastructure etc.• Growing market opportunity to recover, reuse e-waste• Reputational advantage from incorporating environmental trends into company strategy

INCENTIVES• Companies are changing their sourcing strategies

• Increasingly stringent regulation and market entry requirements

• New markets for sustainable products and services

• Acknowledgement of the role of partnerships to maximize sustainability impact and shared

gains (especially with value chain actors, organisations, governments)

• Resource scarcity and environmental degradation are becoming a stimulus for innovation

(investment in renewables, new technology and business models to improve KPI that are

sustainable)

What Does It Mean For Business?

Business strategy

Business model

Business operations

Life-cycle thinking means considering the ENTIRE process and cooperation across value chain:

• Raw material extraction• Sustainable

manufacturing processes• Sustainable products• Packaging and

distribution• Use and maintenance• End-of-life/reusability

Eco-innovation : What? & How?

Enhanced performance:• Positive sustainability

impacts • Competitive advantage

Eco-innovation

Eco-Innovation Drivers

1.Access to new and

expanding market

2.Increase profitability

along the value chain

3.Stay ahead of standards and

regulations

4.Attract investment

5.Increase productivity

and technical capacity

1. Sustainable Consumption

contradicts poverty eradication

2. Informed consumers will

consume sustainably

3. Economic growth leads to

improved wellbeing

4. Only small environmental

actions lead to big changes

Incentives and Responsibilities of BusinessesMyths about Sustainable Consumption

Would you buy sustainable diapers for your babies that don’t work?

Case: Natura

Product SOU compared to conventional cosmetic products:

• 70% less plastic used

• 60% lower CO2 emissions

• Lower transportation costs

• Innovation in the formula (ingredients)

• More attractive retail price = new customer segment

Strategy: Innovation for market differentiation and sustainability

How?

• Continuous research: new technologies, market trends

• Open innovation model and R&D platform involving partners and scientific

institutions

• Investment from national financial institutions

• Select suppliers on a “shadow price”

• Creation of partnerships to build a chain with higher added value.

• Life-cycle approach

Business Growth: Market share of 23 % in Brazil

Annual growth of 26 % in 2005-2010.

1) Sustainability: triple bottom line, mainstreaming of

sustainability in business decision-making

2) Business models based on the principle of circular

economy (closing the loop), sharing economy and

collaborative consumption patterns

3) Focus on radical innovation through partnerships

and collaboration

4) Democratization of production (maker movement

and 3d printing)

5) Social/frugal innovation and inclusive economy:

government engaging private sector in addressing

societal issues and reaching out to ‘the bottom of

the pyramid’

Business responses to emerging

sustainability trends

Make sustainability desireable!

Products don’t sell because they are sustainable. They have to meet needs and be desirable!

Who’s done it? Tesla

They figured out how to make a sustainable product that sells.

Building sustainability into a business model can be profitable!

How?

Good product that makes people feel powerful, cool and desirable.

4. Harnessing the urban consumer as an engine for change

By 2050, cities responsible for:

• 80% of global growth

• 75% of energy, natural resource use

• 75% of GHGs and waste generation.

We consume more and more unequally

• Millions of new middle-class

• Wealthiest 20% 77% consumption

• Growing demand for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (LOHAS)

Every decision impact the lives and decisions of

citizens

Socio-economic circumstances and

individual preferences

influence service and goods

provided by governments,

industry and value chains

Understanding what the right decisions are

within systems they are in

“Sustainable lifestyles are considered as ways of living, social behaviors and choices, that minimize environmental degradation (use of natural resources,CO2

emissions, waste and pollution) while supporting equitable socio-economic development and better quality of life for all.” (Source: UNEP)

“A ‘sustainable lifestyle’ is a cluster of habits and patterns of behaviourembedded in a social context and enabled by efficient institutions, norms and infrastructures that frame individual choice, in order to minimise the use of natural resources and generation of wastes and pollutions, while supporting fairness and prosperity for all” (Source: Lewis Akenji)

“Sustainable Lifestyles” mentioned in SDGs

Sustainable Lifestyles and the 2030 Agenda

1. No universal sustainable lifestyle !!!!

2. Key lifestyle domains : food, housing, mobility, consumer goods, and leisure. Holistic approach required!

3. Lifestyles framed by social and environmental factors (at individual or household level - some beyond control)

4. Lifestyles not static - technology and social norms change

5. Basic social needs evolve with time and society’s affluence

6. Income increases do not directly translate into happiness

7. Sustainable lifestyles must address economic disparity

8. People don’t mean to pollute, but society ‘railroads’ it

9. Knowledge does not = taking action. Blocks: lack of access/lock-in

10. Top-down approaches need bottom-up support.

Key messages of sustainable lifestyles

Lifestyle domains

What we eat and drink – how it produced, processed and provided

– and how we dispose of it all

How we live, where we live, what is used to build, heat and cool

our living spaces and what we install in our houses

What forms of transport we choose, how often we travel and the

distance travelled as well as the supporting systems and

infrastructure

The products we buy, the type and quantity of materials that are

used in producing them, how we use them, and how often we

replace them

How we spend leisure time, our choice of tourism destinations

and activities and the facilities we use

Influencing Factor 1Determinants -”what decides possibility for consumers’ actions?"

Pro- sustainability stakeholders

Sustainable Options

Regulatory Incentives

Attitude-Facilitators-Infrastructure (AFI) framework

(Top-down approach)

ATTITUDES• Education

• Awareness raising

• Publicity

FACILITATORS• Economic incentives

• Labelling

INFRASTRUCTURE• Regulation (hard and soft)

• Spatial planning

Influencing Factor 2

Motivation - ”Why do people consume?"

People don’t consume with the intention to harm the environment;

environmental impacts are a consequence of efforts to:

• Meet essential needs (food, shelter…)

• Meet social needs/expectations (mobility, relationships)

• Satisfy Personal Desires

• Being railroaded to consume (advertisement and marketing)

• No choice (no infrastructure designed, legislative obstacles)

Influencing Factor 3

Drivers - ”What is supporting motivations?"

Lifestyle Domains: Food

Thank you for your

attention!

For more

information see the

resources listed!

Any questions?