According to the United Nations, Sustainable Development Goal number twelve is about ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns and is key in sustaining the livelihoods of current and future generations.
Climate change, Loss of biodiversity and pollution are some of the impacts we are likely to experience or are already experiencing as a result of the current trends in production and consumption. Currently, production and consumption patterns in most places of the world follow a linear approach. That is, most countries employ the take make and dispose approach in their economies. This traditional approach involves taking raw materials from the environment, producing, and then disposing the end material after use.
The circular economy approach on the other hand employs strategies such as recycling, reusing, and reducing in order to limit what we take from the environment and in turn what we produce as waste to the environment. A circular approach to production and consumption reduces environmental pollution, boosts innovation, and enhances sustainability. The transformation from a linear to a circular economy requires, among other things, a shift in the patterns of production and consumption. Consumer behavior or consumption patterns are an important aspect that determines whether circularity is embraced or spurned. Consumer decisions regarding the acquisition, use, and disposal of items have the ability to advance the principles of the circular economy by spurring demand for products and services that are most in line with those values.
Factors that Affect Consumer Acceptance or Rejection of Circularity Strategies
The transition to a circular economy can be significantly influenced by consumer behavior and demand for circular products. The primary challenge in the present circumstances may not be production systems. Government policy makers and regulators have been able to implement stringent rules that implement gradual changes in production units or enterprises. The biggest challenge is getting people or consumers to embrace the new circular consumption models that extend product and resource lifecycles. According to the European Commission, consumers’ attitude towards re-use and repair instead of replacing with new products have great effect on the transition towards circular economy.
There are three main factors that affect consumer decisions on circularity strategies as discussed below.
Information for decision making is an important enabler of change of consumer behavior. Consumer behavior is inconsistent with circularity principles because consumers lack adequate and appropriate information on the impact of a linear economy especially to the environment. Consumers have not rightly understood why they should embrace circularity. You cannot practice what you do not know or do not believe in, and you cannot certainly pay for what you believe in or what you think has value. Provision of clear information of product durability & reparability can significantly increase the chance that consumers choose a more durable or reparable product.
Fit between needs and offering is another factor that determines whether consumers would embrace or reject products that enhance circularity. Customers or consumers can be skeptical about buying a product because of the doubts that it would suit them or fulfill them. Human beings are creatures of habit and trust. They would likely shy away from trying new products because they would have built brand trust thus making it difficult to embrace new products. Therefore, producers who have embraced products that enhance the 10Rs of circularity might need to go an extra mile to influence them to adopt new purchasing patterns. Consumers are hindered from buying products that ensure circularity because they still have questions like;
- Does the new product fit my wants?
- Does it still solve the problem I am facing?
- Do I have a variety of options to choose from?
- Will I still get the same experience with this new product as with the old one that I am used to?
Pricing is another factor that would determine whether consumers would change their purchasing patterns or not. It’s not always the case that circular solutions are the most economical ones, and they occasionally end up being more expensive than linear ones. Manufacturers and producers incur costs from processing, maintenance, disposal, upgrading, and investing time on recyclable materials. This in turn affects the selling and retail prices of the products that enhance circularity. It is very difficult for such manufacturers to preserve their price margins and at the same time meet the customer’s reasonable expectations. Consumers also have limits to the amount of money they can pay for a particular product. If the product that promotes circularity is much more expensive than the one that maintains linearity that they have been paying for, they will stick to the one that promotes linearity.
Conclusion and Potential Resolutions
In conclusion, here are a few resolutions that can be implemented to ensure consumers embrace and get involved in circularity. The first and most important resolution would be to engage directly with consumers. This can be done through creating awareness on the importance of circularity and evaluating what the individuals can do to be a part of the change. For example, opting for products that are recyclable to those that cannot be recycled. It would also be important to indirectly influence consumer behavior by making changes at the product level. Integrating producers and manufacturers in changing behavior of masses without necessarily directly involving the masses would be significant in creating influencing consumer behavior. Production systems largely shape consumer demand by defining the types of products placed on the market and through targeted marketing strategies. Producers can also fuel access to information on and sources of circular products in order to make consumers understand the distinctive characteristics of the circular solutions they are offering. Consumer Behavior change as a means to enhance circularity is a therefore a work in progress.