1 Approaches for evaluating sustainable consumption initiatives1

The following selective overview investigates and discusses various approaches for evaluating sustainable consumption. This attempt to organise various research approaches is part of a larger study analysing research methods and driving forces for sustainable consumption. First investigations show that a wide variety of different approaches and methods do exist but the integration and cross-fertilisation between them has not been achieved to a satisfactory level. 1 WHAT MAKES A SUCCESSFUL INITIATIVE? The assumption behind international declarations and policy efforts addressing sustainable consumption is that consumers have some degree of control over the environmental and social impacts of their choices.2 The hope is that consumers will express their preferences3 for a clean environment and fair trade through their purchase decisions if they have information about the relevant impacts of their choices. Currently, such information is not available thus contributing to market failure. Regarding sustainability both the level of consumption and the composition of the basket of goods and services matter. Through conscious choices and public policies, the compositio