24. Consumption and Sustainability

Moving consumption toward sustainable patterns has been a key goal of sustainability science since the 1990s. However, a large knowledge gap remains between identified consumption problems that restrict social and ecological development and progress toward solutions. Unfortunately, “sustainable consumption” is generally discussed in a rational context and does not address how culture, pleasure, identity, and communication drive consumption. This exclusively rational framing limits innovation in problem-solving research methodologies based on the other drivers of consumption. Marketing, however, excels at capitalizing on all the drivers of consumption. Consumers are the targets of countless behavior change strategies, and this article offers perspective on how the nonrational drivers of consumption can be leveraged to instead pursue sustainable consumption. Bridging the behavior change knowledge gap can be relevant for many sustainability impasses, as many of them stem from human behavior, and boundary work drawing on behavioral science can effectively navigate norms and expectations at the interface of science and society. The better researchers understand the behaviors of relevant actors, the better their behavior change strategies will support sustainability transitions.