Opportunities and insights for reducing fossil fuel consumption by households and organizations

Paul C. Stern (), Kathryn B. Janda, Marilyn A. Brown, Linda Steg, Edward L. Vine and Loren Lutzenhiser
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Paul C. Stern: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Kathryn B. Janda: Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford
Marilyn A. Brown: School of Public Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology
Linda Steg: University of Groningen, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences
Edward L. Vine: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Loren Lutzenhiser: Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning, Portland State University

Nature Energy, 2016, vol. 1, issue 5, 1-6

Abstract: Abstract Realizing the ambitious commitments of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference (COP21) will require new ways of meeting human needs previously met by burning fossil fuels. Technological developments will be critical, but so will accelerated adoption of promising low-emission technologies and practices. National commitments will be more achievable if interventions take into account key psychological, social, cultural and organizational factors that influence energy choices, along with factors of an infrastructural, technical and economic nature. Broader engagement of social and behavioural science is needed to identify promising opportunities for reducing fossil fuel consumption. Here we discuss opportunities for change in households and organizations, primarily at short and intermediate timescales, and identify opportunities that have been underused in much of energy policy. Based on this survey, we suggest design principles for interventions by governments and other organizations, and identify areas of emphasis for future social science and interdisciplinary research.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1038/nenergy.2016.43

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