The Material Stock–Flow–Service Nexus: A New Approach for Tackling the Decoupling Conundrum

Helmut Haberl, Dominik Wiedenhofer, Karl-Heinz Erb, Christoph Görg and Fridolin Krausmann
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Helmut Haberl: Institute of Social Ecology, Alpen-Adria Universitaet Klagenfurt, Wien, Graz, Schottenfeldgasse 29, Vienna 1070, Austria
Dominik Wiedenhofer: Institute of Social Ecology, Alpen-Adria Universitaet Klagenfurt, Wien, Graz, Schottenfeldgasse 29, Vienna 1070, Austria
Karl-Heinz Erb: Institute of Social Ecology, Alpen-Adria Universitaet Klagenfurt, Wien, Graz, Schottenfeldgasse 29, Vienna 1070, Austria
Christoph Görg: Institute of Social Ecology, Alpen-Adria Universitaet Klagenfurt, Wien, Graz, Schottenfeldgasse 29, Vienna 1070, Austria
Fridolin Krausmann: Institute of Social Ecology, Alpen-Adria Universitaet Klagenfurt, Wien, Graz, Schottenfeldgasse 29, Vienna 1070, Austria

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 7, 1-19

Abstract: Fundamental changes in the societal use of biophysical resources are required for a sustainability transformation. Current socioeconomic metabolism research traces flows of energy, materials or substances to capture resource use: input of raw materials or energy, their fate in production and consumption, and the discharge of wastes and emissions. This approach has yielded important insights into eco-efficiency and long-term drivers of resource use. But socio-metabolic research has not yet fully incorporated material stocks or their services, hence not completely exploiting the analytic power of the metabolism concept. This commentary argues for a material stock–flow–service nexus approach focused on the analysis of interrelations between material and energy flows, socioeconomic material stocks (“in-use stocks of materials”) and the services provided by specific stock/flow combinations. Analyzing the interrelations between stocks, flows and services will allow researchers to develop highly innovative indicators of eco-efficiency and open new research directions that will help to better understand biophysical foundations of transformations towards sustainability.

Keywords: socioeconomic metabolism; economy-wide material flow analysis; in-use stocks of materials; stock-flow relations; dynamic stock model; decoupling; socioecological transformation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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