Sustainable consumption, ecology and fair trade / edited by Edwin Zaccaï.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Zaccaï, Edwin.

Series:

Routledge research in environmental politics ; 13.

Routledge research in environmental politics ; 13

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Consumption (Economics)--Environmental aspects.

Consumption (Economics).

Consumption (Economics)--Moral and ethical aspects.

Physical Description:

xiv, 267 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Routledge, 2007.

Summary:

Sustainable consumption is an objective attracting growing attention within sustainable development policy circles, academic research and society more generally. This timely volume discusses the key debates concerning the involvement of consumers in this field. How can we analyse the roles of consumers, their motivations and effectiveness relating to sustainable consumption? What does sustainable consumption represent for consumers, in particular from the standpoint of ecology and fair trade, and which are the changes taking shape that can give form to more effective policies in these areas? These are some of the important questions addressed in this work. The contributors examine a range of interesting and relevant case studies including: household energy consumption; the promotion of green products; Fair Trade; Oxfam Worldshops and Southern producers.

This book takes an interdisciplinary approach, including sociology, policy studies, philosophy, engineering and marketing. This well-balanced study presents theoretical debates, as well as empirical evidence in order to: Characterize the basic problems and determiners of an evolution towards, and the obstacles to, more sustainable consumption patterns. Produce knowledge on the profile and motivations of consumers sensitive to these issues. Explore modes of interaction and innovation for changes in which consumers are involved. This text will be of key interest to those researching and studying in the fields of sustainable development, Environmental Politics and Sociology.

Contents:

1 Introduction: contradictions and studies / Edwin Zaccai 1

Part I Consumption: what kind of problem for sustainable development? 15

2 What's wrong with consumption for sustainable development: overconsumption, underconsumption, misconsumption? / Paul-Marie Boulanger 17

3 Sustainable household consumption: fact, future or fantasy? / Anton J. M. Schoot Uiterkamp 33

4 A Sustainable consumption and sustainable welfare / John Lintott 41

5 How to attribute power to consumers? When epistemology and politics converge / Gregoire Wallenborn 57

Part II Who is sensitive to sustainable consumption, and why? 71

6 Testing propositions towards sustainable consumption among consumers / Catherine Rousseau, Christian Bontinckx 73

7 Greening some consumption behaviours: do new routines require agency and reflexivity? / Francoise Bartiaux 91

8 Marketing ethical products: what can we learn from Fair Trade consumer behaviour in Belgium? / Patrick de Pelsmacker, Wim Janssens, Caroline Mielants, Ellen Sterckx 109

9 Consumption as a solidarity-based commitment: the case of Oxfam Worldshops' customers / Gautier Pirotte 127

10 What justifications for a sustainable consumption? / Coline Ruwet 144

Part III Dynamics of sustainable consumption 161

11 Consumption: a field for resistance and moral containment / Michelle Dobre 163

12 Sustainable consumption in a 'de-growth' perspective / Serge Latouche 178

13 Social change for changing the consumer's behaviour: application of the actionalist theory to the issue of consumption / Nadine Fraselle, Isabelle Scherer-Haynes 186

14 Is large-scale Fair Trade possible? / Ronan le Velly 201

15 Impact of Fair Trade in the South: an example from the Indian cotton sector / Isabelle Scherer-Haynes 216

16 Conclusions: the future of sustainable consumption / Paul-Marie Boulanger, Edwin Zaccai 231.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [239]-256) and index.

ISBN:

041541492X

9780415414920

OCLC:

70668615