We are surrounded by an abundance of material goods in our society: we often buy things we don’t really need and discard items that are still fully functional. But how can we foster a more mindful approach to consumption? The “Consumption Reduction Compass,” developed by Marlene Münsch and Dr. Viola Muster, project managers at ConPolicy, together with researchers from TU Berlin, offers answers to this question.
The guide is designed to help readers critically assess their own possessions and consumption habits. It begins by providing a theoretical overview of the mechanisms and structures of consumer society, examining the causes and consequences of overconsumption, as well as the potential benefits of conscious ownership reduction for personal well-being. Additionally, it addresses the problematic aspects of the minimalism trend. In the second part, readers are offered practical advice on how to achieve a long-term reduced consumption lifestyle.
The "Consumption Reduction Compass" is based on findings from the Citizen Science project "My Thing – I Am What I (Don’t) Have," in which researchers and citizen scientists collaboratively explored methods for reducing personal possessions and examined their potential for promoting long-term consumption reduction. The project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), concludes in September 2024.
The guide has been published by oekom and is available for download for free here.
For more background, you can listen to the radio reports on Deutschlandfunk Kultur and Deutschlandfunk.
Further information on the project can be found here.