“These Grandmas Drove Me Mad. It Was Brilliant!”—Promising Starting Points to Support Citizen Competence for Sustainable Consumption in Adults

Antonietta Di Giulio, Corinne Ruesch Schweizer, Rico Defila, Philipp Hirsch and Patricia Burkhardt-Holm
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Antonietta Di Giulio: Program Man-Society-Environment (MGU), University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Ch-4051 Basel, Switzerland
Corinne Ruesch Schweizer: Program Man-Society-Environment (MGU), University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Ch-4051 Basel, Switzerland
Rico Defila: Program Man-Society-Environment (MGU), University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Ch-4051 Basel, Switzerland
Philipp Hirsch: Program Man-Society-Environment (MGU), University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Ch-4051 Basel, Switzerland
Patricia Burkhardt-Holm: Program Man-Society-Environment (MGU), University of Basel, Vesalgasse 1, Ch-4051 Basel, Switzerland

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 3, 1-36

Abstract: The article addresses citizen competence for sustainable consumption in adults. It discusses whether it is possible to develop educational offerings for adults (being by nature short and isolated) that effectively promote this competence and whether it makes a difference if sustainable consumption is approached by focusing on good life (quality of life) and justice or by focusing on natural resources and environment (as is suggested by, e.g., environmental literacy approaches). Taking the case of energy policy, it presents an educational intervention (EdIn) developed, implemented, and investigated by the authors. In data-analysis, three approaches were adopted (methodological triangulation), one analysing the deliberations’ cognitive structure, one analysing the participants’ perception, one analysing the participants’ reaction (in terms of the knowledge/concepts and values/concerns they voiced). The results show, firstly, that the didactical design of EdIn was successful with a view to supporting citizen competence in participants. Secondly, they show that in adult civic education sustainable consumption should be approached by focusing on good life and justice. Thirdly, they indicate that people do not necessarily perceive themselves to be part of societal decision-making, leading from the question of the design and content of civic educational activities to the question of their necessity.

Keywords: energy policy; sustainable consumption; education for sustainable development; adult education for sustainable development; citizen and consumer; civic education; citizen competence; civic competence; good life; quality of life (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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