Sustainable Consumption

We are actively engaged in core and synthesis research, policy research, and advocacy to achieve more sustainable consumption, lifestyles and provisioning.  Our objectives include the pursuit of opportunities for substantial and enduring behaviour change at the level of individuals, governments, institutions and corporations to achieve a sustainable scale of human activity along with an equitable distribution of fundamental and substantive human and ecological rights.

To achieve this we investigate, explore, identify, apply and integrate various theories, mechanisms, tools and practices.  This requires participation in research, conferences and workshops that engage in dialogue, cultivate and synthesise knowledge, and identify new pathways and opportunities to achieve the above objectives.  It also means working with all levels of government, academics, NGOs and private industry.

Our approach is differentiated as one that places people first by utilising the social determinants of health - where health is broadly defined in terms as proposed by the World Health Orgainsation and the determinants of health reflected by the Lalonde Report and Health Impact Assessment principles^{1, 2, 3, 4} - within the context of distinct cultural needs and ecological realities.

This approach enables transdisciplinary solutions to problem solving that uniquely transgress conventional disciplinary barriers.

Examples of our work can be found in the above presentations, publications and reports links.


Research
Contributing to transdisciplinary research and forming  partnerships to advance knowledge synthesis that lead to practical solutions

Much of our research exceeds the standard approach to sustainability (ie. efficiency) taken in most circles today, especially government and industry.  Conservation, sufficiency, and sustainability fundamentally require behaviour change ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}, and this necessitates institutional and large scale societal changes.  In other words, choice (whether consumer, institutional, or societal) is largely framed, structured, and guided by such mechansisms as: utilities; intermediaries; infrastructures; technologies; politics; social practices, norms, and processes; markets; law; and other mechanisms.  Within this broader context, the power of consumer (and even producer) choice to achieve more sustainable outcomes can be exceedingly limited.  Indeed, social power and influence, and it's distribution, perform important roles in sustainable consumption, behaviour choices, quality of llife, and human health.  The social determinants of health recognises these critical roles and thus performs an integral component in much of our research.

The co-evolution of socio-technical systems of provisioning are glacial.  Current sustainability challenges are urgent.  To match these disparate realities, it is essential to move changes forward as swiftly as possible.  Current understandings must translate to necessary action and practical solutions as rapidly as possible, leaving flexibility such that systems may adapt and evolve as needed.



Policy
Shaping policy to reflect more sustainable consumption outcomes

We're engaged in policy research at levels that span local, provincial, national and  international jurisdictions.

Areas of particular expertise include Aboriginal well-being, energy resources, climate change, health,  urban development, technologies, quality of life, sustainable buildings, indicators, and transportation



Advocacy
Raising awareness and encouraging change

Our advocacy work intersects jurisdictions and players across a diverse range of issues, with the ultimate objective to encourage more sustainable consumption, greater sustainability and enhanced social provisioning and human well being.

Diverse media, including the Internet, newspapers, conferences, and consultations and workshops are utilised to achieve our results.

Specific sectors include transportation, food, health promotion and disease prevention, economic development, air quality and climate change, forestry and mining, technologies, and energy.  Samples of some of this work is reflected in the above linked research, presentations, publications and reports as well as the various links and events.