Sustainable Living: mainstream or pipedream?
14/11/11: How can consumers be inspired to turn positive intentions into action?
Sustainable Living: mainstream or pipedream?
The question of how to drive sustainability into the heart of society is one of the most important of our time. As yet, no one has arrived at an answer and while the majority of people express concern over climate change, few are incentivised to act.
On 22 November, Unilever and the Guardian Sustainable Business Network jointly hosted a panel debate in London entitled 'Sustainable Living: Mainstream or Pipedream?' The focus was on how more people can be encouraged and enabled to change their behaviour.
A panel of international experts
Writer, broadcaster and environmental champion Jonathan Dimbleby chaired the panel consisting of Unilever CEO Paul Polman, Tensie Whelan, President, Rainforest Alliance, Malini Mehra, CEO, Centre for Social Markets, and David Jones, Global CEO, Havas, Euro RSCG Worldwide and One Young World Co-Founder.
The audience in the room was made up of key opinion formers in sustainability, behaviour change and marketing as well as some media. And around 1,500 people in 50 countries tuned into the live webcast.
The lively discussion covered a range of topics including whether government legislation works, whether marketing simply fuels unsustainable consumption and the issues associated with consumers in the developing world aspiring to live the same way as those in the developed world.
Our thoughts on behaviour change
To coincide with the debate, Unilever published 'Inspiring Sustainable Living: The Five Levers for Change' - a model showing what we have learnt from behaviour change campaigns alongside a collection of essays from experts in the field.
Paul Polman also launched a behavioural study that reveals the showering habits of families in the UK with the aim of helping consumers save energy, water and money. He invited the online audience to contribute their ideas on how to encourage people to take greener showers. The best will be featured on the Guardian website.
