Why behavioural insights matter

A considerable fraction of greenhouse gas emissions results from the choices we make when we eat, go to work, choose a washing machine, turn on air conditioning, or go on vacation.

Some of these decisions require thought and deliberation, while others are repetitive and automatic. Many decisions we make can affect the environment more broadly. Thus, we implicitly contribute to biodiversity loss, deteriorating ecosystems, or pollution.

Behavioural sciences can provide important insights on the underlying drivers of behaviours that impact our environment and suggest adequate ways to influence them. For instance

• We not only take our personal benefits into account, we also care for others and the environment.
• While we often say we want to be aware of the environmental impact of our actions, we often fail to act on our intentions.
• We often engage in eco-friendly action to signal to ourselves and others that we are good people.
• Many environmentally relevant decisions, such as what type of transport to take or whether to recycle waste, are influenced by how the options are presented.

Introducing behavioural insights into environmental and climate policies can benefit our environment and help protect our climate.

How behavioural insights can help

Behaviourally informed environmental and climate policies aim to help Europeans make greener choices. For instance:

• Car CO₂ emissions
  The EU’s car labelling directive requires carmakers to give consumers information at point of sale to help them buy fuel-efficient cars. For example labels, posters, displays, guides, promotional literature, etc. with details of fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions.
  The directive was supported by a behavioural study (PDF).
• Product durability and reparability
  The implementation of the circular economy action plan (PDF), one of the main blocks of the European Green Deal, is based partly on a behavioural study.
  The study investigates how best to present information on products’ durability and reparability, to shift purchasing decisions towards more sustainable choices.

Ongoing projects

• Barriers to implementing EU green policies: a behavioural perspective
• Rethinking biodiversity policy: the pivotal role of behavioural science
• Designing and testing EU harmonised waste sorting labels
• European Consumer Food Waste Forum
• Evaluating consumers’ willingness and ability to use digital food information
• Building a sustainability-driven mindset among European Commission staff
• (De)centralized water reuse

Completed projects

• The Social Biking Challenge: a mobile app to increase bicycle commuting

Selected publications

• Comparing the impact of positive, negative, and graded sustainability labels on purchase decisions (JRC Science for Policy Brief, 2021)
• Farmers and the new green architecture of the EU common agricultural policy: a behavioural experiment (JRC Science for Policy Report, 2021)
• Consumer testing of alternatives for communicating the Environmental Footprint profile of products (Directorate-General for Environment, 2019)
• Behavioural factors affecting the adoption of sustainable farming practices: a policy-oriented review (European Review of Agricultural Economics, 2019)
• Assessment of different communication vehicles for providing environmental footprint information (DG Environment, 2018)
• Behavioural study on consumers’ engagement in the circular economy (Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, 2018)

More publications