Tailored advice and services to enhance sustainable household consumption in Finland

Abstract

Household consumption (for housing, mobility, food, goods and services) accounts for about 70% of Finland's carbon footprint (greenhouse gas emissions caused by the domestic final use of products). Therefore, climate change mitigation calls for changes in human behaviour and consumption patterns. Opinion polls indicate that Finns are concerned about climate issues; at the same time the carbon footprint of household consumption in Finland is high on a global scale. It is clear that environmentally sustainable behaviour and decisions at the household level require knowledge, motivation and services that support actions. To tackle unsustainable consumption patterns, action models promoting households' environmental sustainability were developed and piloted in Finland. The action research approach was applied to study the process of development and piloting of the action models, with key intermediaries and target groups involved in the process. These action models were designed specifically to help households decrease their energy consumption and carbon footprint. The action models provide tailored feedback and advice to address sustainable consumption from two perspectives: (1) everyday sustainable choices and practices and (2) long-term home-renovation decisions. In the action models, the focus is on the most significant consumption choices. Therefore they also supplement Finland's programme for sustainable consumption and production. The pilot work demonstrates the role of the interactive process and feedback from target groups and intermediaries in significantly improving the action models, the importance of personal contact for supporting household interpretation of numerical data and provision of tailored advice, the role of intermediaries in disseminating research-based knowledge and tools, and that sustainability-based perspectives in the renovation and housing-maintenance sector can provide new and supplementary business opportunities.