{"id":8549,"date":"2024-03-08T07:58:24","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T07:58:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/?p=8549"},"modified":"2024-03-14T08:54:51","modified_gmt":"2024-03-14T08:54:51","slug":"behaviour-change-and-net-zero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/2024\/03\/08\/behaviour-change-and-net-zero\/","title":{"rendered":"Behaviour Change and Net Zero"},"content":{"rendered":"

I attended the I-SEE Sustainable Energy & the Environment Webinar: Behaviour change for net zero<\/em>, last Tuesday. \u00a0It was given by Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh <\/a>of the University of Bath.<\/p>\n

Here's Lorraine's introduction:<\/p>\n

In this talk, I will argue that most of the measures required to reach our climate change targets require at least some degree of behaviour change. And that more broadly, social transformation is required to reach \u2019net zero\u2019 carbon targets in the coming years. In order to achieve this, we need public engagement and participation in decision-making about what a low-carbon future looks like, and how to reach it. We also need a wide range of measures to change people\u2019s behaviour at home, work and elsewhere. I will present findings from polls and citizens assemblies on public concern about climate change, and support for net zero policies; and from behavioural science research on how to effectively change behaviour to cut emissions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It was a lively, entertaining and informative talk and anyone attending must have come away with a good basic grounding in the comparative advantage and difficulty of different ways of helping people make changes leading to a low(er) carbon life.<\/p>\n

There were lots of questions at the end. Lorraine was asked what she thought was the best single thing that government might do to move things along. \u00a0She said \u2013 rightly in my view \u2013 house insulation, noting the failure of several schemes over the last 25 years or so meaning that the nation's oldest housing stock remains comparatively cold and expensive to heat. \u00a0 Only 2,900 homes have benefited from the Great British Insulation Scheme<\/a>, out of a target of 300,000. \u00a0This is a disgrace. \u00a0The Times<\/a> has details on how long insulation will take at the current rate. \u00a0But loft insulation is never going to be as sexy as a gleaming new heat pump.<\/p>\n

I asked this:<\/p>\n

In 2022 the ONS reported that 77% of UK households said that they were already trying to make some changes towards low carbon living. However, 79% of these said that they were unable to afford to make the changes that would have the most impact. \u00a0How can the poorest in society best be helped to avoid being left behind in the journey to net zero?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Lorraine's response was to agree with the premise of the question \u2013 citing BEVs and heat pumps \u2013 and then pointing to financial savings from doing some things \u2013 eg, not buying new stuff, turning thermostats down. \u00a0She also looked to companies and government reducing prices.<\/p>\n

All valid points, but she did not respond to my main 'left behind' point: \"How can the poorest in society best be helped to avoid being left behind in the journey to net zero?\"<\/p>\n

Take house insulation, there is a real possibility that the poorer you are the less you will spend on insulating your home \u2013 or to be able even to try to do this \u2013 and, as building standards rise in new builds, the poorest will be left living in cold and draughty buildings that are increasingly expensive to heat.<\/p>\n

Spending some of the fabled \u00a328bn on fixing this might be a good idea. \u00a0If, that is, it's possible to fix it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I attended the I-SEE Sustainable Energy & the Environment Webinar: Behaviour change for net zero, last Tuesday. \u00a0It was given by Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh of the University of Bath. Here's Lorraine's introduction: In this talk, I will argue that most...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":237,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-comment","category-talks-and-presentations"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/237"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8549"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8549\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}