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Opportunities and insights for reducing fossil fuel consumption by households and organizations

Author

Listed:
  • Paul C. Stern

    (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
    Norwegian University of Science and Technology
    Social and Environmental Research Institute)

  • Kathryn B. Janda

    (Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford)

  • Marilyn A. Brown

    (School of Public Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology)

  • Linda Steg

    (University of Groningen, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences)

  • Edward L. Vine

    (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)

  • Loren Lutzenhiser

    (Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning, Portland State University)

Abstract

Realizing the ambitious commitments of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference (COP21) will require new ways of meeting human needs previously met by burning fossil fuels. Technological developments will be critical, but so will accelerated adoption of promising low-emission technologies and practices. National commitments will be more achievable if interventions take into account key psychological, social, cultural and organizational factors that influence energy choices, along with factors of an infrastructural, technical and economic nature. Broader engagement of social and behavioural science is needed to identify promising opportunities for reducing fossil fuel consumption. Here we discuss opportunities for change in households and organizations, primarily at short and intermediate timescales, and identify opportunities that have been underused in much of energy policy. Based on this survey, we suggest design principles for interventions by governments and other organizations, and identify areas of emphasis for future social science and interdisciplinary research.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul C. Stern & Kathryn B. Janda & Marilyn A. Brown & Linda Steg & Edward L. Vine & Loren Lutzenhiser, 2016. "Opportunities and insights for reducing fossil fuel consumption by households and organizations," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 1(5), pages 1-6, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natene:v:1:y:2016:i:5:d:10.1038_nenergy.2016.43
    DOI: 10.1038/nenergy.2016.43
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    Cited by:

    1. Houda Elmustapha & Thomas Hoppe & Hans Bressers, 2018. "Understanding Stakeholders’ Views and the Influence of the Socio-Cultural Dimension on the Adoption of Solar Energy Technology in Lebanon," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-17, January.
    2. Balaji Kalluri & Vishnupriya Vishnupriya & Pandarasamy Arjunan & Jay Dhariwal, 2023. "Net-Zero Energy Campuses in India: Blending Education and Governance for Sustainable and Just Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-23, December.
    3. Li, Hao & Wang, Zhao-Hua & Zhang, Bin, 2023. "How social interaction induce energy-saving behaviors in buildings: Interpersonal & passive interactions v.s. public & active interactions," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    4. Fanghella, Valeria & D'Adda, Giovanna & Tavoni, Massimo, 2022. "Evaluating the impact of technological renovation and competition on energy consumption in the workplace," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    5. Hilario Becerril & Ignacio De los Rios, 2016. "Energy Efficiency Strategies for Ecological Greenhouses: Experiences from Murcia (Spain)," Energies, MDPI, vol. 9(11), pages 1-23, October.
    6. Stephen M. Wheeler, 2017. "A Carbon-Neutral California: Social Ecology and Prospects for 2050 GHG Reduction," Urban Planning, Cogitatio Press, vol. 2(4), pages 5-18.
    7. Horne, Christine & Kennedy, Emily Huddart, 2017. "The power of social norms for reducing and shifting electricity use," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 43-52.
    8. Busic-Sontic, Ante & Czap, Natalia V. & Fuerst, Franz, 2017. "The role of personality traits in green decision-making," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 313-328.
    9. Stanisław Bielski & Renata Marks-Bielska & Paweł Wiśniewski, 2022. "Investigation of Energy and Economic Balance and GHG Emissions in the Production of Different Cultivars of Buckwheat ( Fagopyrum esculentum Moench): A Case Study in Northeastern Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-24, December.
    10. Chad M. Baum & Christian Gross, 2017. "Sustainability policy as if people mattered: developing a framework for environmentally significant behavioral change," Journal of Bioeconomics, Springer, vol. 19(1), pages 53-95, April.
    11. Frei, Fanny & Sinsel, Simon R. & Hanafy, Ahmed & Hoppmann, Joern, 2018. "Leaders or laggards? The evolution of electric utilities’ business portfolios during the energy transition," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 655-665.
    12. Niamir, Leila & Filatova, Tatiana & Voinov, Alexey & Bressers, Hans, 2018. "Transition to low-carbon economy: Assessing cumulative impacts of individual behavioral changes," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 325-345.
    13. Ante Busic-Sontic & Franz Fuerst, 2017. "The Personality Profiles of Early Adopters of Energy-Efficient Technology," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 924, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    14. Thomas Hoppe & Frans H. J. M. Coenen & Maria T. Bekendam, 2019. "Renewable Energy Cooperatives as a Stimulating Factor in Household Energy Savings," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-33, March.
    15. Christopher M. Jones & Stephen M. Wheeler & Daniel M. Kammen, 2018. "Carbon Footprint Planning: Quantifying Local and State Mitigation Opportunities for 700 California Cities," Urban Planning, Cogitatio Press, vol. 3(2), pages 35-51.
    16. Li, Yanhong & Guo, Ziting & Zhao, Zhihao & Gao, Yikui & Yang, Peiyuan & Qiao, Wenyan & Zhou, Linglin & Wang, Jie & Wang, Zhong Lin, 2023. "Multi-layered triboelectric nanogenerator incorporated with self-charge excitation for efficient water wave energy harvesting," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 336(C).
    17. van den Broek, Karlijn L. & Walker, Ian, 2019. "Exploring the perceptions of drivers of energy behaviour," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 1297-1305.
    18. Matteo Fontana & Massimo Tavoni & Simone Vantini, 2019. "Functional Data Analysis of high-frequency load curves reveals drivers of residential electricity consumption," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(6), pages 1-16, June.
    19. Dominik Bär & Stefan Feuerriegel & Ting Li & Markus Weinmann, 2023. "Message framing to promote solar panels," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-9, December.
    20. Nsabimana, Aimable & Rukundo, Bosco Johnson & Mukamugema, Alice & Ngabitsinze, Jean Chrysostome, 2022. "Residential energy demands in Rwanda: Evidence from Robust models," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    21. Wamsler, Christine & Brink, Ebba, 2018. "Mindsets for Sustainability: Exploring the Link Between Mindfulness and Sustainable Climate Adaptation," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 55-61.

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