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Material footprint of low-income households in Finland : consequences for the sustainability debate

  • The article assesses the material footprints of households living on a minimum amount of social benefits in Finland and discusses the consequences in terms of ecological and social sustainability. The data were collected using interviews and a questionnaire on the consumption patterns of 18 single households. The results are compared to a study on households with varying income levels, to average consumption patterns and to decent minimum reference budgets. The low-income households have lower material footprints than average and most of the material footprints are below the socially sustainable level of consumption, which is based on decent minimum reference budgets. However, the amount of resources used by most of the households studiedThe article assesses the material footprints of households living on a minimum amount of social benefits in Finland and discusses the consequences in terms of ecological and social sustainability. The data were collected using interviews and a questionnaire on the consumption patterns of 18 single households. The results are compared to a study on households with varying income levels, to average consumption patterns and to decent minimum reference budgets. The low-income households have lower material footprints than average and most of the material footprints are below the socially sustainable level of consumption, which is based on decent minimum reference budgets. However, the amount of resources used by most of the households studied here is still at least double that required for ecological sustainability. The simultaneous existence of both deprivation and overconsumption requires measures from both politicians and companies to make consumption sustainable. For example, both adequate housing and economic mobility need to be addressed. Measures to improve the social sustainability of low-income households should target reducing the material footprints of more affluent households. Furthermore, the concept of what constitutes a decent life should be understood more universally than on the basis of standards of material consumption.show moreshow less

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Metadaten
Document Type:Peer-Reviewed Article
Author:Michael Lettenmeier, Tuuli Hirvilammi, Senja Laakso, Satu Lähteenoja, Kristiina Aalto
URN (citable link):https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:bsz:wup4-opus-44037
DOI (citable link):https://doi.org/10.3390/su4071426
Year of Publication:2012
Language:English
Source Title (English):Sustainability
Volume:4
Issue:7
First Page:1426
Last Page:1447
Dewey Decimal Classification:600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften
Licence:License LogoCreative Commons - Namensnennung