Emerging sustainability concerns and policy implications of urban household consumption: A systematic literature review

The 2015 Paris Agreement marked a significant shift in public and scholarly discourse on climate change by laying more emphasis on stakeholder involvement and local level policies in achieving sustainability transitions. Sustainable Development Goal 12 further emphasises the importance of households in achieving sustainable consumption before 2030, especially in urban centres. However, since its adoption in 2015, no study has sought to synthesise the scholarship conducted around the emerging urban household consumption challenges that could inhibit the achievement of Goal 12. Through a systematic selection and in-depth review of relevant literature over the last five years, this paper assesses these sustainability challenges and critically examines the policy implications for achieving sustainable consumption. The review notes that in recent years, researchers have explored a range of issues including energy consumption, sustainable lifestyles, consumption footprints and class relations in urban household consumption through models and social perspectives. The urban household challenges identified include, inter alia: intensifying household consumption; rising commodification of household activities; continued reliance on unsustainable energy sources; low levels of sustainability education; high costs of sustainable lifestyles; and class differences in sustainable consumption patterns. In addressing these problems, the literature suggests strategies such as greening urban infrastructure, involving households in intervention programmes and promoting sustainability education, among others. Furthermore, to achieve Goal 12, future research and policy initiatives should consider the impact of materiality in household consumption, explore the interlinkages of household consumption with wider socio-cultural institutions and be more practice-oriented. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.