How do we empower policymakers from across the political spectrum to talk about and implement policies that enable sustainable lifestyles?

Deeper changes in lifestyles can only come with changes in supporting infrastructures. The EU 1.5-Degree Lifestyles project brings together pioneering policymakers in the European Union with a shared goal of helping the region meet the target of limiting global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees Celsius. The project provides policymakers with support to radically reduce the carbon footprint of European lifestyles through political momentum and systemic change. 

The project is led by the ZOE Institute for Future-Fit Economies in partnership with the Beacon for Sustainable Living, an initiative of OneEarth Living and the Hot or Cool Institute. Together, we explore how to translate the research on sustainable living into ambitious and transformative policies. The aim is to strengthen policies in high-carbon areas such as mobility, food and housing by integrating behavioural and systemic infrastructural changes into policy design. 

The 1.5-Degree Lifestyles project helps policymakers identify gaps between the EU’s climate ambitions and its current policies related to lifestyles. Through policy briefs, labs, and workshops, it supports the collaborative development of pathways for closing these gaps. By connecting policymakers from different policy areas with relevant stakeholders and experts on science-based emissions, the project allows for developing fresh and comprehensive policy scenarios and political strategies. Through co-creation, the policy labs encourage exchanges of experiences and information while striving to evoke feelings of empowerment and self-efficacy.

In partnership with Climate Outreach, the project also is developing a toolkit on how EU policymakers can talk about 1.5 degree lifestyles. The aim is to strengthen the climate action of policymakers through bold policies and narratives.

The toolkit:

• reviews cutting-edge research on sustainable lifestyles and identifies gaps in current EU policies and approaches;

• provides practical advice on how to have constructive conversations about sustainable living, grounded in common values;

• offers six promising narratives for orienting policymakers around a vision for sustainable lifestyles;

• provides recommendations for speaking with policymakers across the political spectrum and for how to respond effectively to counter-arguments; and

• underscores the importance of listening and engaging with each other to inspire transformative action. 

→ Visit the project website