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The Problem of Consumption

Author

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  • Peter Dauvergne

    (Peter Dauvergne is Professor of Political Science, Canada Research Chair in Global Environmental Politics, and Director of the Liu Institute for Global Issues at the University of British Columbia. His latest book, The Shadows of Consumption (MIT Press), won the 2009 Gerald L. Young Award, presented by the Society of Human Ecology for the best book authored in 2008 in the field of human ecology.)

Abstract

One of the biggest challenges for global environmental governance is "the problem of consumption." The task involves far more than simply influencing what consumers choose, use, and discard. It requires a concerted effort to address the systemic drivers-including advertising, economic growth, technology, income inequality, corporations, population growth, and globalization-that shape the quantities, costs, and distribution of consumer goods. Current efforts to green consumption are "improving" management on many measures, such as per unit energy and resource use. Yet, this essay argues, such "progress" needs to be seen in the context of a rising global population and rising per capita consumption, where states and companies displace much of the costs of consumption far from those who are doing most of the consuming. This raises many questions about the value of sub-global measures for evaluating the environmental effectiveness of efforts to govern consumption. It also suggests the need for more global cooperation to mitigate the ecological effects of consumption. Current international initiatives such as the Marrakech process to draft a 10-Year Framework on "sustainable production and consumption," however, will need to go well beyond simply promoting efficiencies, new technologies, and a greening of household consumption. Researchers in global environmental politics can assist here by probing even further into the complexity of governing the drivers and consequences of consumption, then working to thread these findings into the international policy process. (c) 2010 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter Dauvergne, 2010. "The Problem of Consumption," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 10(2), pages 1-10, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:tpr:glenvp:v:10:y:2010:i:2:p:1-10
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    Cited by:

    1. Mabsout, Ramzi, 2015. "Mindful capability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 86-97.
    2. Alessandro De Matteis & Fethiye Burcu Turkmen Ceylan & Mona Daoud & Anne Kahuthu, 2022. "A systemic approach to tackling ocean plastic debris," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 42(1), pages 136-145, March.
    3. Tomas Ariztia & Dorothea Kleine & Roberto Bartholo & Graca Brightwell & Nurjk Agloni & Rita Afonso, 2016. "Beyond the “deficit discourse†: Mapping ethical consumption discourses in Chile and Brazil," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 48(5), pages 891-909, May.
    4. Ericson, Torgeir & Kjønstad, Bjørn Gunaketu & Barstad, Anders, 2014. "Mindfulness and sustainability," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 73-79.
    5. Ioannis Kostakis & Konstantinos P. Tsagarakis, 2022. "Social and economic determinants of materials recycling and circularity in Europe: an empirical investigation," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 68(2), pages 263-281, April.
    6. Atul Parvatiyar & Jagdish N. Sheth, 2023. "Confronting the deep problem of consumption: Why individual responsibility for mindful consumption matters," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(2), pages 785-820, April.
    7. Kate J. Neville & Glen Coulthard, 2019. "Transformative Water Relations: Indigenous Interventions in Global Political Economies," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 19(3), pages 1-15, August.
    8. Peter Dauvergne & Jennifer Clapp, 2016. "Researching Global Environmental Politics in the 21st Century," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 16(1), pages 1-12, February.

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