Short answer
Shift focus from 'doing more with less' to 'doing less but better' by designing for reduced material throughput and promoting alternative consumption models.
- Field
- Sustainability
- Source
- Sustainability Science (2018)
- Method
- Literature Review and Conceptual Analysis
- Evidence
- Strong effect
Achieving sustainable consumption and production requires a systemic approach that addresses overall consumption volumes and socio-economic structures, not just technological efficiency. This sustainability research insight is drawn from a 2018 study published in Sustainability Science. Using Literature review and conceptual analysis, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Shift focus from 'doing more with less' to 'doing less but better' by designing for reduced material throughput and promoting alternative consumption models.
Efficiency alone is insufficient for sustainable consumption and production goals
Achieving sustainable consumption and production requires a systemic approach that addresses overall consumption volumes and socio-economic structures, not just technological efficiency.
Sustainability Science · 2018
Key Findings
- 01The dominant approach to SCP, as reflected in the SDGs, primarily relies on promoting efficiency through technological improvements and informed consumer choices.
- 02An efficiency-focused approach alone is unlikely to lead to sustainable outcomes because it does not adequately address overall consumption volumes, distributional issues, or necessary social and institutional changes.
- 03Reducing overall consumption and production volumes is crucial for environmental sustainability, but this must be done in ways that safeguard social sustainability, requiring significant restructuring of socio-economic systems.
Application
Design takeaway
Shift focus from 'doing more with less' to 'doing less but better' by designing for reduced material throughput and promoting alternative consumption models.
How to apply
When developing new products or services, consider how to design for reduced ownership, shared use, or extended product life, and explore business models that decouple profit from increased material consumption.
Project actions
- 01When analyzing your design's impact, go beyond just energy or material efficiency and consider the total volume of resources used throughout its lifecycle and beyond.
- 02Explore alternative business models that don't rely on constant growth and increased consumption, such as product-as-a-service or repair-focused models.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Provides a critical analysis of current global sustainability goals.
- +Identifies a key gap in the dominant approach to SCP.
Limitations
It can be challenging to measure and design for 'overall consumption volumes' and 'socio-economic restructuring' within the scope of a single design project.
Reliability & validity
The study's reliability stems from its comprehensive review of existing literature. Validity is supported by the analysis of established global policy frameworks like the SDGs.
Think critically
If efficiency is not enough, what are the key systemic changes required, and how can designers effectively contribute to or influence these changes?
Design Principles
"Systemic Sustainability Design: Design solutions must consider their impact within the broader socio-economic and environmental system, aiming to reduce overall resource throughput and promote equitable well-being."
Designers often focus on improving the efficiency of products and processes. However, this research highlights that without considering the broader system of consumption and production, including the total volume of goods and services, true sustainability cannot be achieved. This necessitates a shift in design thinking towards more holistic and systemic solutions.
What This Means for Your Design
Just making things more energy-efficient isn't enough to be truly sustainable. We also need to think about how much stuff we're making and consuming overall, and how our society and economy are set up.
How to use in your project
- 1.Use this research to justify a design approach that prioritizes reduction, reuse, and systemic change over incremental efficiency improvements.
- 2.Cite this paper when discussing the limitations of purely technological solutions for sustainability.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
This research highlights that while efficiency improvements are valuable, they are insufficient for achieving true sustainability. A systemic perspective is required, addressing overall consumption volumes and socio-economic structures. Therefore, my design project will focus on [mention your systemic approach, e.g., designing for durability and repair, or a service model that reduces individual ownership] to move beyond mere efficiency.
Source
Sustainability Science
Transforming systems of consumption and production for achieving the sustainable development goals: moving beyond efficiency
journal · 2018
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about efficiency alone is insufficient for sustainable consumption and production goals?
- Shift focus from 'doing more with less' to 'doing less but better' by designing for reduced material throughput and promoting alternative consumption models. Evidence: Sustainability Science (2018).
- Why does "Efficiency alone is insufficient for sustainable consumption and production goals" matter for design?
- Designers often focus on improving the efficiency of products and processes. However, this research highlights that without considering the broader system of consumption and production, including the total volume of goods and services, true sustainability cannot be achieved. This necessitates a shift in design thinking towards more holistic and systemic solutions.
- How can designers apply this research?
- Shift focus from 'doing more with less' to 'doing less but better' by designing for reduced material throughput and promoting alternative consumption models.
- What were the main findings?
- The dominant approach to SCP, as reflected in the SDGs, primarily relies on promoting efficiency through technological improvements and informed consumer choices.. An efficiency-focused approach alone is unlikely to lead to sustainable outcomes because it does not adequately address overall consumption volumes, distributional issues, or necessary social and institutional changes.. Reducing overall consumption and production volumes is crucial for environmental sustainability, but this must be done in ways that safeguard social sustainability, requiring significant restructuring of socio-economic systems.
- What research method was used?
- Literature Review and Conceptual Analysis.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2018 journal from Sustainability Science.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When developing new products or services, consider how to design for reduced ownership, shared use, or extended product life, and explore business models that decouple profit from increased material consumption.
- What are the limitations?
- The paper's findings are based on a review of existing literature and policy frameworks, and do not present new empirical data on specific design interventions.