: Civilisation of Shared Frugality Dr. Katharina Hetze Leuphana University of Lüneburg (Germany)
What is our recent civilisation mainly about?
1. Sufficiency Sufficiency as a neglected sustainability strategy Brundtland Report (1987) and SDGs (2015): Call for a sustainable development The limits of CSR: unbalanced discussion of the three sustainability strategies: efficiency, consistency and sufficiency The sufficiency strategy is mainly neglected in society, and even more in the corporate context, because it is translated as renunciation
1. Sufficiency Sufficiency as a necessity It can be argued that more sufficiency in industrialised countries is a necessity if we want to achieve sustainable development. It is therefore necessary to reflect on how a strategy of sufficiency can become more accepted in society and how different disciplines can contribute to this concept.
2. Frugality De-growth as a current phenomenon De-growth: Prosperity without growth Prosperity without growth: High on the list is the need for us all to consume less "stuff" and to seek a type of prosperity outside the conventional trappings of affluence. LOVOS: Lifestyle of voluntary simplicity
3. Sufficiency, de-growth, frugality as a topic at theological events such as the Protestant Church Congress Business ethics and approaches towards a more sustainable economy are extensively discussed.
4. Civilisation of Shared Frugality (1/3) Developed in liberation theology, firstly called «Civilisation of Poverty»: «The civilisation of poverty... makes the universal satisfaction of basic needs the principle of development and the growth of common solidarity the basis of humanisation. Civilisation of Shared Frugality: The prevailing model of economy and civilisation is to be replaced by a new world civilisation Resources and wealth must be divided more equitably Requirement of restrictions in the lifestyle of the people in rich countries Criteria: Universal applicability Justice Sustainability (Maier, 2009)
4. Criteria of a Civilisation of Shared Frugality (2/3) Universal applicability: «The way in which the rich countries of the North do economy can even for ecological reasons not universally be applied. Justice: «Justice on a global scale means that every human being has the same right to natural resources and energy consumption, and that also the ecological resulting costs are to be distributed at least approximately equal. Sustainability: «Sustainability means to run economy in a way that does not destroy the foundations of acting and that takes into account the rights and interests of future generations.
4. Civilisation of Shared Frugality (3/3) The implementation of such a civilisation of shared frugality is a gigantic challenge. For it a new social contract between business, science and politics is needed. The interlocking of the problems requires interdisciplinary efforts. Here also the religious communities with their motivation and action potential are in great demand. Justice and preservation of creation are also questions of faith.
4. Suffiency and frugality: utopia or thinkable way of life? Studies show that, above a certain threshold, more wealth and consumption do not lead to more happiness or satisfaction. The objective of living a decent life, or in other words, being part of a Civilisation of Shared Frugality, could become a thinkable way of life for more and more people in industrialised countries.
5. Research project Research Question Sufficiency and frugality represent a shared concept which has been discussed in both disciplines, sustainability sciences and theology. To what extent can this concept of a Civilisation of Shared Frugality thus add to the argument for a sufficiency strategy?
5. Research project Step 1: Literature review Background: The academic and policy advisory work done on degrowth and sufficiency outlines ways to have prosperity without growth. It is about living a decent life. Aim: explore both the theological concept of shared frugality and the sustainability sciences concepts of de-growth and sufficiency Expected result: Answer to the question to what extent the two approaches are compatible or even congruent CSF Sufficiency Synonym?
5. Research project Step 2: Explorative consumer study Literature review of sustainable consumption literature: Identification of consumers who show sensitivity with regard to sufficiency and frugality (e.g. regarding different Sinus milieus, LOHAS, LOVOS) and how this affinity is reflected in their personal consumption patterns Interviews with sufficiency-sensitive consumers: Their views of sufficiency and frugality Introduction of the concept of shared frugality Assessment of their interest in a Civilisation of Shared Frugality Expected result: some consumers might be more attracted than others due to differing attitudes towards theological concepts
5. Research project Step 3: Explorative business study Interviews with company representatives: Discussion of the results of the consumer interviews Discussion of kind of commitment towards sufficiency and frugality in business practices in order to meet the consumer expectations predicted from the consumer interviews Expected result: some company representatives might view sufficiency strategies and a civilisation of shared frugality more positively depending on their personal inclination towards the concepts
6. Conclusion (1/2) : Relevance of sufficiency and frugality for CSR and sustainable development Sustainability and CSR need a more balanced discussion of the sustainability strategies efficiency, consistency and sufficiency. The concept of a Civilisation of Shared Frugality could be found to reinforce the argument for a societal necessity for modest and decent lifes in industrialised countries. This reinforcement could underpin a more active discussion of sufficiency strategies for consumers and corporations.
6. Conclusion (2/2): Relevance of sufficiency and frugality for SDG 12 SDG 12: Sustainable consumption and production We (Countries) commit to making fundamental changes in the way that our societies produce and consume goods and services. Governments, international organizations, the business sector and other non-state actors and individuals must contribute to changing unsustainable consumption and production patterns, ( ). The concept of sustainable consumption and production was later recognized in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, adopted in 2002 at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). On that occasion, sustainable consumption and production was identified as one of the three overarching objectives of, and essential requirements for, sustainable development, together with poverty eradication and the management of natural resources in order to foster economic and social development.
Thank you for your attention Contact: hetze@uni.leuphana.de
Literature Jackson, T. (2016): Prosperity Without Growth. Foundations for the Economy of Tomorrow. Second Edition. Routledge. Lexikon der Nachhaltigkeit (2015): Suffizienz, https://www.nachhaltigkeit.info/artikel/suffizienz_2034.htm Maier, M. (2009): Civilization of Shared Frugality, http://www.conspiration.de/texte/english/2009/maier-martin-e.html Pierce, L.B. (2000): Choosing Simplicity. Gallagher Press. Ray, P.H. & Anderson, S.R. (2001): The Cultural Creatives. How 50 Million People Are Changing the World. Three Rivers Press. Sinus-Institut (2017): Informationen zu den Sinus-Milieus 2017, http://www.sinus-institut.de/fileadmin/user_data/sinus- institut/dokumente/downloadcenter/sinus_milieus/2017-01- 01_Informationen_zu_den_Sinus-Milieus.pdf UN (2015). Sustainable Development Goals, http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/