Measure or Management?—Resource Use Indicators for Policymakers Based on Microdata by Households

Johannes Buhl, Christa Liedtke, Jens Teubler, Katrin Bienge and Nicholas Schmidt
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Johannes Buhl: Wuppertal Institut fuer Klima, Umwelt, Energie gGmbH, Division Sustainable Production and Consumption, Doeppersberg 19, 42103 Wuppertal, Germany
Christa Liedtke: Wuppertal Institut fuer Klima, Umwelt, Energie gGmbH, Division Sustainable Production and Consumption, Doeppersberg 19, 42103 Wuppertal, Germany
Jens Teubler: Wuppertal Institut fuer Klima, Umwelt, Energie gGmbH, Division Sustainable Production and Consumption, Doeppersberg 19, 42103 Wuppertal, Germany
Katrin Bienge: Wuppertal Institut fuer Klima, Umwelt, Energie gGmbH, Division Sustainable Production and Consumption, Doeppersberg 19, 42103 Wuppertal, Germany
Nicholas Schmidt: Faculty of Management and Economics, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 12, 1-16

Abstract: Sustainable Development Goal 12 (SDG 12) requires sustainable production and consumption. One indicator named in the SDG for resource use is the (national) material footprint. A method and disaggregated data basis that differentiates the material footprint for production and consumption according to, e.g., sectors, fields of consumption as well as socioeconomic criteria does not yet exist. We present two methods and its results for analyzing resource the consumption of private households based on microdata: (1) an indicator based on representative expenditure data in Germany and (2) an indicator based on survey data from a web tool. By these means, we aim to contribute to monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals, especially the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources. Indicators based on microdata ensure that indicators can be disaggregated by socioeconomic characteristics like age, sex, income, or geographic location. Results from both methods show a right-skewed distribution of the Material Footprint in Germany and, for instance, an increasing Material Footprint with increasing household income. The methods enable researchers and policymakers to evaluate trends in resource use and to differentiate between lifestyles and along socioeconomic characteristics. This, in turn, would allow us to tailor sustainable consumption policies to household needs and restrictions.

Keywords: sustainable production and consumption; resource indicator; sustainable development goals; material footprint; household consumption; microdata (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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