Behavior Change
The latest developments supporting a shift toward sustainable consumption, as well as specific ways brands are encouraging less wasteful behaviors.
WRAP Advises Electronics Shoppers to Keep Calm and Be 'SMART' This Black Friday
As retailers and shoppers gear up for another “highly charged” Black Friday, UK anti-waste advocacy organization WRAP has provided a ‘SMART’ guide for buying electronic products. Each year the UK buys 1.4 million tonnes (or £21 billion worth) of electrical and electronic products; WRAP estimates that consumers discard a similar amount. The SMART guidelines are designed to help consumers keep calm, buy smarter, and avoid unnecessary waste of devices and their components.
COPtimism: 5 Reasons to Be Optimistic About Our Future Climate
Every day brings more news stories about the disruption and damage wreaked by climate change. And since the international Paris Agreement for climate action was signed this time last year, the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have continued to soar, making 2016 the hottest year on record. We’re already feeling the effects of climate change, and they aren’t going to go away.
Sodexo Campaigns Aim to Change Behavior to Save Food, Reduce Water Use and More
Serving more than 9,000 sites throughout North America, Sodexo is using its reach to try to influence behaviors among its millions of customers.
Changing What We Eat: The Role of Junk Food in Our Global Food Crisis
Millions of people struggled to afford traditional staple foods like maize, rice and wheat when global food prices spiked between 2007 and 2011, and a recent study found that in 10 countries studied, they switched to western-style processed “junk food” alternatives high in sugars, fats and salt.
Disney, Dole Launch Character-Clad Produce to Promote Healthy Eating
Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media (DCPI) and Dole Food Company have announced a co-branded assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables featuring iconic Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel characters.
What the Personal Beauty Industry Can Teach Us About Men’s Diets
As a teenager growing up in England in the 1990s, so-called lads’ mags were all the rage. Back then, these kinds of magazines ruled the newsstands, promulgating a kind of macho boyhood that was rough and rowdy. They set a cultural expectation for young English men that rolled well into the 2000s. And then, one by one, those magazines went out of business as readers moved online and their media preferences changed. Other things in British men’s lives have changed, too.
Challenge Your Boss to an 'Edge Pledge' to Fight Extinction
Who wouldn’t want to dare their boss to a challenge that would put them ‘on the edge’? Perhaps seeing them sky dive, or getting a diamond nose piercing? Or even wearing a crazy costume to a company conference? Now there is a way you can legitimately and safely (e.g. keep your chances of a promotion) challenge your boss to do something outrageous and at the same time save wildlife on the edge of extinction.
How to Engage the 90% of Our Brains That Resists Changing Behaviour
In a rich and fascinating afternoon workshop on Monday, behavioural design experts Sille Krukow and Teis Andres of Krukow Behavioural Consulting explored their theory and tools on how conscientious companies can design the right environments in which consumers can achieve their sustainability aspirations.
Gap, Mr Black Campaign Asks Consumers to ‘Clean Less, Do More’ with Their Denim
High street apparel brand Gap and garment aftercare expert Mr. Black have partnered on a new campaign that highlights the links between denim care and sustainability. The two brands have joined forces to educate consumers that by adopting a simple aftercare routine it’s possible to prolong the lifespan of garments while saving water and energy.
Why We've Got Beef with Some of the US' Largest Food Companies
This week, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report — authored by myself and UCS analyst Lael Goodman — that scored 13 fast food, retail, and food manufacturing companies on their deforestation-free beef commitments and practices.
€3.2M Behavior Change Campaign Aims to Reduce Food Waste, Boost Healthy Eating in London
Households in London toss an estimated 900,000 tonnes of food each year, of which 540,000 tonnes could have been eaten. Starting this month and set to run for three years, the latest initiative led by Resource London aims to reduce this avoidable food waste and increase awareness of more healthy and sustainable eating – all while saving Londoners up to £330 million.
Knorr Campaign Asks Consumers to ‘Eat’ Less Water
While consumers have become more aware of food waste issues thanks to media campaigns and numerous initiatives led by startups and large companies alike, such efforts tend to overlook the intricate relationship between food production and water scarcity.
While Companies Continue to Strive for Sustainability, Consumers Still at the Heart of Lasting Change
A decade ago something remarkable happened: Business leaders watched Al Gore present An Inconvenient Truth, and accepted that man-made climate change was real and catastrophic. CEOs said that something must be done and embraced carbon pricing and emissions trading. These same captains of industry were further encouraged when the UK Stern Review explained that early investment in low-carbon solutions would outweigh its costs and boost economic growth.
Dove Real Beauty Campaign ‘Searching’ for Teen Self-Esteem in Australia
Unilever Australia’s latest iteration of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty focuses on the internet search terms used by young girls, which highlight the prevalence of negative body image and eating disorders.
Sustainability by Default: Making Doing Good the Easiest Choice
One of the most vexing challenges in the sustainability movement is how to get people to do the right thing. Research by organizations such as GlobeScan suggest that the majority of consumers care about sustainability and want to do the right thing, yet the gap between desire and daily behavior remains a major obstacle to progress. I believe that we have been focused on getting people to do the right thing, when a more fruitful path would be to make doing the right thing the default choice.
Earth Overshoot Day Continues to Creep Up the Calendar
While Olympians are desperately competing in Rio for the fastest times and highest scores, humanity has achieved a different world record – we have used up nature’s budget for the entire year in record time. Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s annual demand on nature exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year and arrived earlier than ever, falling on August 8, 2016. Unfortunately, there are no winners in the race for natural resources.
Diageo Aiming to Drive Home Dangers of Drunk Driving with Immersive VR Experience
Alcohol giant Diageo — whose brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bulleit and Buchanan’s whiskies; and Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas; along with Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness — recently announced plans to roll out a first-of-its-kind immersive virtual reality (VR) technology that will allow consumers of legal drinking age to experience the many pitfalls associated with irresponsible drinking.
The Hubbub on Anti-Litter Campaigns: New Website Showcases Best Practices
Behavior change charity Hubbub has launched a new global website designed to aid councils and businesses who are looking for solutions in their fight to tackle litter. Complete with statistics on impact and costs per campaign, the charity hopes the website will help reduce wasteful spending by providing guidance on best practices and inspiration.
Perdue Responds to Abuse Exposé with Groundbreaking Animal Welfare Policy
Perdue Foods, one of the nation's largest poultry producers, recently unveiled a precedent-setting commitment to improving animal welfare, which involves much higher standards and requirements for its poultry facilities. Citing the "five freedoms," a set of ethical imperatives for farmed animal welfare, 2016 and Beyond: Next Generation of Perdue Commitments to Animal Care outlines the company's efforts to implement on-farm improvements such as environmental enrichment and natural light; curb malicious abuse; and eliminate cruel live-shackle slaughter.
Why the UN's REDD+ Program Needs More Short-Term Focus
The time has come to revisit REDD+ — the UN initiative that attempts to create financial value for the carbon locked in forests — to ensure that it is truly delivering on the momentum from Paris 2015.