Collective Public Commitment: Young People on the Path to a More Sustainable Lifestyle

Petra Lindemann-Matthies, Ellinor Hoyer and Martin Remmele
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Petra Lindemann-Matthies: Institute of Biology and Schoolgarden Development, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany
Ellinor Hoyer: Institute of Biology and Schoolgarden Development, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany
Martin Remmele: Institute of Biology and Schoolgarden Development, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 20, 1-18

Abstract: Society’s development toward more sustainable lifestyles can only succeed if changes are also performed at the individual level. We, therefore investigated whether the participation of teenagers (14–19 years old) in a collective public commitment and accompanying workshop on plastic consumption strengthened their willingness and ability to take action. Previous projects such as the EcoTeam Program served as workshop templates. Over a period of five weeks, the teenagers met once a week for the workshop, an exchange of ideas, and the establishment of weekly goals for their commitment. Semi-structured interviews were carried out to investigate the outcomes directly after the project and three years later. Participants developed a more conscious environmental perception, which led to behavioral changes and the willingness to maintain or improve those changes. Beyond this outcome, most participants functioned as multipliers and ambassadors for a more sustainable lifestyle in their social environment. Even three years after the commitment project, all former participants had maintained their behavioral changes. Collective public commitment could thus be a suitable method for ESD, and a vehicle to support young people on their path to a more sustainable lifestyle.

Keywords: education for sustainability; collective commitment; young people; eco-workshop; interviews (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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