Sustainable consumption and production as a system: experience in Lithuania

Abstract

Activities in the area of sustainable consumption and production in Lithuania started in 1993 when the first cleaner production projects were implemented. The capacity in the area of cleaner production enabled further development and implementation of preventive environmental initiatives. Cleaner production activities have been followed by establishment of a system for development, financing and implementation of preventive innovations, implementation of environmental management systems (including development of new approaches for implementation, particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises), product-oriented measures such as life cycle assessment, eco-design, and sustainability reporting. A very important role in building the basic capacity level and implementing the sustainable consumption and production initiatives in Lithuania has been played by the Institute of Environmental Engineering (APINI) at Kaunas University of Technology. This article presents an overview of activities in the area of sustainable consumption and production in Lithuania since 1992 as well as results/lessons learnt from these activities. To overcome barriers and to ensure progress in the area of sustainable consumption and production, a model of a system of sustainable consumption and production has been developed. The objective of the system is to minimise energy and material use as well as waste output, and to eliminate the “rebound” effect.