Assessing Lifestyle Transformations and Their Systemic Effects in Energy-System and Integrated Assessment Models: A Review of Current Methods and Data

Andreas Andreou, Panagiotis Fragkos, Theofano Fotiou and Faidra Filippidou
Additional contact information
Andreas Andreou: E3-Modelling, 70-72 Panormou Street, P.O. Box 11523, 115 23 Athens, Greece
Panagiotis Fragkos: E3-Modelling, 70-72 Panormou Street, P.O. Box 11523, 115 23 Athens, Greece
Theofano Fotiou: E3-Modelling, 70-72 Panormou Street, P.O. Box 11523, 115 23 Athens, Greece
Faidra Filippidou: E3-Modelling, 70-72 Panormou Street, P.O. Box 11523, 115 23 Athens, Greece

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 14, 1-24

Abstract: Achieving the ambitious climate targets required to limit global warming to 1.5 °C requires a deep transformation of the supply-and-demand side of energy–environmental–economic systems. Recent articles have shown that environmentally sustainable consumer behaviors driven by lifestyle changes can significantly contribute to climate-change mitigation and sustainable development goals. However, lifestyle changes are not adequately captured by scenarios developed with integrated assessment and energy-system models (IAMs/ESMs), which provide limited policy insights. This article conducts a systematic review of the IAM and ESM literature to identify the most important lifestyle changes in current mitigation pathways for the residential and transport sectors, review the employed state-of-the-art modeling approaches and scenario assumptions, and propose improvements to existing methodological frameworks. The review finds that mode shifts towards public transport and active transport modes, shared mobility, and eco-driving have the greatest impact in the transport sector, while actions that reduce space and water-heating requirements and the circular economy are the most effective practices in households. Common modeling approaches lack sophistication as they omit (1) the dynamics and costs of demand-side transitions, (2) the heterogenous responses of different consumer groups, and (3) the structural effects of lifestyles on the macro-economy. New approaches employing innovative methodologies combined with big data collected from users offer new avenues to overcome these challenges and improve the modeling of lifestyle changes in large-scale models.

Keywords: integrated assessment models (IAMs); energy-system models; behavioral change; lifestyle transformation; mitigation pathways (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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