Ola Persson at KTH is examining the rapid expansion of research on ideas such as sufficiency and post-growth in his thesis. Heather Schoonover at Lund University writes about business models for reuse of home furnishings in hers. Both have done their PhD in Mistra Sustainable Consumption.
The rapid expansion of research on ideas such as sufficiency and post-growth indicate an increasing realization that fundamental societal change is needed if we are to avoid devastating environmental effects and social inequities.
In Ola Persson’s thesis he points out that fundamental societal change is needed if we are to avoid devastating environmental effects and social inequities. Using a theoretical perspective consisting of the literature on sustainable consumption, sufficiency politics and policies, and scaling sustainability initiatives, this thesis aims to contribute to our knowledge about socialecological transformations from the perspective of sufficiency, specifically addressing (un)sustainable consumption.
Heather’s work focuses on business models that can facilitate sustainable consumption practices, primarily regarding rental and reuse of home furnishings and other consumer goods. In her thesis, she aims to understand why we do not see more rental and reuse business models in practice, and how these models can become more prevalent. The thesis addresses two research questions: what barriers rental and reuse business models encounter, and how these barriers can be overcome. She has specifically looked into Sweden’s pioneering reuse-based shopping mall, ReTuna.
Read more about Heather’s thesis at the homepage of Lund University here.
THE THESES:
Read Ola Persson’s thesis ”Scaling sufficiency – Towards less material consumption” here.
Read Heather Schoonover’s thesis ”Business Models for Sustainable Consumption Identifying and Overcoming Barriers to Rental and Reuse of Home Furnishings” here.
VIDEO:
See Ola Persson explain his research here:
CONTACT:
Ola Persson
Division of Urban and Regional Studies, KTH, Stockholm
olaperss@kth.se
Heather Schoonover
Lund University IIIEE
heather.schoonover@iiiee.lu.se
