Young adults urged to
play role in shift towards sustainable lifestyles
Paris, 11 May 2011 - Young people want to
be a force for change and create their own
vision of sustainable development, according
to survey of more than 8000 young adults
from 20 countries conducted by the United
Nations Environment Programme.
The study, called the
Global Survey for Sustainable Lifestyles,
was one of the first global surveys on sustainable
lifestyles. The results provide intriguing
insights into the way young people think
about their daily lives and activities,
their aspirations for the future, and their
beliefs about the role they play in influencing
change.
Its results show that
young adults from Australia to Vietnam,
and Ethiopia to Egypt, consider poverty
and environmental degradation to be the
world's two biggest challenges, but they
want more information on what they can do
to be part of the solution. They also need
help to understand the combined environmental,
economic and social pillars of sustainable
development.
The survey's results
are presented in UNEP's new report, Visions
for Change: Recommendations for Effective
Policies on Sustainable Lifestyles, highlighting
the need to work together to better understand,
educate and empower young adults worldwide
so they can create their own positive visions
of sustainable lifestyles and become involved
in change.
For instance, the survey
found that:
While young people are
willing to participate and improve the world
they live in, and are confident that they
can do so (with only 23.5 per cent of young
people thinking they could not have an influence
on local policies), they need guidance and
opportunities to take concrete action.
Although most young
people consider environmental degradation
as one of the top two global challenges,
this varies from region to region; 82.3
per cent of young people in Australia, 73.8
per cent in Vietnam and 71.1 per cent in
Sweden consider environmental degradation
as one of the top two global challenges,
while only 42.4 per cent in Egypt, 38 per
cent in Brazil and 34.2 in Argentina do
so.
Young adults are very
satisfied with their lives, with only a
few of them dreaming of luxury lifestyles,
but they still seek financial, social, environmental
and personal security. They want to live
in a clean environment, as opposed to chaotic
and polluted urban areas, and be closer
to nature, particularly in developing/emerging
countries like Brazil, Vietnam and Lebanon.
Although demand for
organic and local foods is strong, young
people in most surveyed countries do not
mention organic food when asked to describe
their daily purchasing habits. For instance,
in the Philippines, organic food and fair
trade products were hardly mentioned and
only 10 per cent of young people in Portugal
thought about it when explaining their choices.
In many countries, the
issue of sustainability is rarely mentioned
as a reason for using public transport;
for example, in Brazil less than 1 per cent
of young people mentioned generating less
pollution or preserving the environment
as motivations for using public transport.
"Our aim was to
listen to young people's voices from around
the world, to hear what they think, their
aspirations for the future and reactions
to sustainable lifestyles," said Sylvie
Lemmet, director of UNEP's Paris-based Division
for Technology, Industry and Economics.
"We hope that by doing this we can
better understand and identify the best
strategies to develop effective policies
and initiatives for the sustainable lifestyles
we will need in the future."
This survey was a joint
project developed in the framework of the
Marrakech Process on Sustainable Consumption
and Production (SCP) by UNEP and the Task
Force on Sustainable Lifestyles, led by
Sweden from 2005 to 2009.
Understanding lifestyles
is crucial if we are to solve some of the
environmental challenges we face today.
A sustainable lifestyle means rethinking
our ways of living, how we buy and what
we consume every day. It also includes rethinking
how we organize our daily lives, altering
the way we socialize, exchange, share, educate
and build identities. Enabled both by individual
actions and efficient infrastructures, sustainable
lifestyles play a key role in minimizing
the use of natural resources, emissions,
waste and pollution while supporting equitable
socio-economic development.
The survey focused on
young urban adults aged 18-35. With half
of the world's population under 30 years
of age and most of them living in developing
countries, young adults are increasingly
becoming catalysts for social, cultural
and technological innovation and significant
figures in shaping lifestyles and consumption
trends.
The collection and analysis
of the survey resulted from a collaborative
effort involving an international network
of more than 45 organizations, including
the International Association of Universities,
28 universities and higher education institutions,
research centres and experts, civil society
organizations, communications agencies and
youth groups.
The survey reveals that
while young adults are willing to participate
and help improve the world they live in,
they need to be given more options that
they can adapt to their everyday lives for
them to contribute to the development of
sustainable lifestyles.
Other conclusions include:
Young people want local
options that they can include in their daily
lives: Asked to react to sustainability
scenarios -mobility (car sharing, bicycle
centre, car pooling), food (urban gardens,
vegetable bag subscription, family take-away)
and housekeeping (collective laundry, urban
composting, energy management) - most young
people choose the bicycle centre, urban
gardens and urban composting. This shows
the need to have initiatives that are involving
but not intrusive, where they can interact
and participate at the local level.
There is a need to build
trust and participation: Trust was an issue
for many young people; only 30 per cent
of those surveyed think their neighbours
trust each other. Despite this, many young
people actively participate in activities
involving others. For instance, in countries
like Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines
and South Africa, more than 80 per cent
of participants have been part of an association
in the last 12 months, with the least involved
young people living in Egypt, Japan and
India. For sustainable lifestyles solutions
at the local and community level to be successful,
more trust and social links among young
people are needed. This will allow cooperation,
solidarity and collective creativity to
develop, creating the essential environment
for sustainable solutions to flourish. Associations,
non-governmental organizations and youth
groups need to build partnerships with young
people to inform them about and engage them
in sustainable lifestyles practices.
Promoting research and
education for sustainable lifestyles: For
a better understanding of sustainable lifestyles
and consumption patterns, more research
and education is needed to help in the shift
towards sustainable lifestyles. Schools,
professional training and awareness raising
have an important role to play in building
capacities for sustainable lifestyles. Existing
initiatives and networks that focus on research
and education for sustainable lifestyles
should be improved and replicated. This
will help advance sustainable lifestyles
and create new visions for sustainable lifestyles.
"Our responsibility
to future generations rests on building
strong and credible visions of a sustainable
future and the GSSL has taken a first important
step in this direction," said Tim Jackson,
professor and director of RESOLVE at the
University of Surrey, a GSSL research partner.
"Visions for Change shows genuine seeds
of real hope and that hope may be the most
powerful resource at our disposal,"
he added.
This report is aimed
at policy makers and relevant stakeholders,
to assist them on how to help support the
shift to sustainable lifestyles through
effective policies and initiatives, including
communication and awareness-raising campaigns.
It consists of cross-country conclusions
and recommendations as well as 16 country
papers, which provide insight into country-specific
conditions, culture, economic development
and other factors affecting lifestyles.
New Zealand revealed
its national GSSL results in April, two
months after the strong 6.3-magnitude earthquake
hit the country's largest city of Christchurch,
killing 148 people and forcing hundreds
to evacuate to neighbouring areas.
"The research findings
impact on the rebuilding of Christchurch
after our devastating earthquake. As a snapshot,
they show there is more to consider in the
rebuild than just the buildings. We need
to acknowledge the wellbeing and lifestyle
choices of our residents in the visions
for our city," said MP Nicky Wagner.
Notes to Editors:
The Marrakech Process
on Sustainable Consumption and Production
(SCP) is a global multi-stakeholder platform
that promotes SCP policies, programmes and
implementation activities and to work towards
a Global Framework for Action on SCP, known
as the 10 Year Framework of Programmes on
SCP (10YFP). It assists countries in their
efforts to green their economies, helps
corporations to develop greener business
models and encourages consumers to adopt
more sustainable lifestyles. UNEP and the
United Nations Department for Economic and
Social Affairs (UN-DESA) serve as the secretariat
of this global process, with an active participation
of national governments, development agencies,
private sector, civil society and other
stakeholders. Visit www.uneptie.org/scp/marrakech/for
more information.
The 20 countries in
the GSSL are Argentina, Australia, Brazil,
Canada, Colombia, Egypt, Ethiopia, India,
Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines,
Portugal, South Africa, Sweden, Turkey,
the United Kingdom, the United States of
America and Vietnam.
To download Visions
for Change:
Report: www.unep.fr/scp/publications/details.asp?id=DTI/1321/PA
Country Papers: www.unep.fr/scp/publications/details.asp?id=WEB/0166/PA
About UNEP DTIE:
Created in 1972, UNEP
represents the United Nations' environmental
conscience. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, its
mission is to provide leadership and encourage
partnership in caring for the environment
by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations
and peoples to improve their quality of
life without compromising that of future
generations. UNEP's Division of Technology,
Industry and Economics - based in Paris
- helps governments, local authorities and
decision-makers in business and industry
to develop and implement policies and practices
focusing on sustainable development. The
Division leads UNEP's work in the areas
of climate change, resource efficiency,
and harmful substances and hazardous waste.
Strengthening of IPCC agreed at plenary
session in Abu Dhabi