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Sustainable Income Standards – towards a greener minimum
Have people in the United Kingdom come to expect living standards that are incompatible with global environmental objectives?
Present environmental commitments, such as the Climate Change Act (2008), imply profound changes in the way that we live and consume. Previous analysis by Druckman and Jackson (2010) of the Minimum Income Standard for the United Kingdom (MIS) estimated that if every household consumed at exactly the MIS level, carbon emissions in the UK would be cut by 37 per cent - showing some potential for reducing emissions, but not enough to meet the long-term target of an 80 per cent reduction by 2050.
Funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, this project set out to explore whether greener patterns of consumption are compatible with maintaining a minimum acceptable standard of living, using MIS as a baseline of consumption.
The Minimum Income Standard is grounded in decisions made by members of the public, but also draws on expert knowledge to ensure that these decisions are well informed. This research used a similar approach of public consultation combined with expert knowledge. The research was conducted in two stages:
Stage 1 – Green possibility
Called “green possibility”, Stage 1 sought to identify a set of options and scenarios that offered the greatest potential for reducing the environmental impact of the MIS. This part of the research was led by RESOLVE, at the University of Surrey, supported by desk research at CRSP. Stage 1 involved:
- a review of the relevant literature;
- consultation with key experts as individuals and in groups at a number of seminars and meetings; and
- additional calculations based on the evidence and discussions with experts.
Stage 2 – Green acceptability
Called “green acceptability”, Stage 2 of the research took the options developed at Stage 1 to members of the public, to explore the extent to which such changes were compatible with maintaining a socially acceptable minimum living standard and whether the public would consider them to be reasonable responses to environmental considerations. Four focus groups were recruited to cover a range of geographical areas and to cover different household types.
The research focused on three areas of household emissions:
- household energy, including energy used for heating, hot water, cooking, lighting and appliances;
- food and diet;
- transport and travel.
The findings identify common factors that influence the acceptability of greener consumption patterns, both positively and negatively. A full report of the research findings is due to be published in December 2011.
Start date: January 2011
End date: September 2011
Project Team: Yvette Hartfree, Donald Hirsch, Kim Perren and Nicola Selby, with Angela Druckman from RESOLVE (ESRC Research group on Lifestyles, Values and Environment), University of Surrey.
Sponsor: Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Publications
Stage 1 Working Paper: Sustainable Income Standards: possibilities for greener minimum consumption
Druckman, A., Hartfree, Y., Hirsch, D. and Perren, K. (2011) Sustainable Income Standards: towards a greener minimum? York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Related Links:
www.minimumincomestandard.org
www.jrf.org.uk/blog/2011/07/green-enough-essential-living-standards
Related Publications:
Bradshaw, J., Middleton, S., Davis, A., Oldfield, N., Smith, N., Cusworth, L. and Williams, J. (2008) A minimum income standard for Britain: what people think. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Druckman, A. and Jackson, T. (2010). 'The bare necessities: how much household carbon do we really need?' Ecological Economics 69(9), pp.1794–1804.
Hirsch, D. (2011) A minimum income standard for the United Kingdom in 2011. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Smith, N., Davis, A. and Hirsch, D. (2010) A minimum income standard for rural households. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
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