People need help prioritising impactful sustainability actions

Many people need help to prioritise sustainability actions that have the most impact, according to Ikea’s latest People & Planet ​Consumer Insights & Trends study, carried out with Globescan.

The survey, which collected data from 33,000 people, across 30 countries where the retailer operates, indicates that over a third of people would take more action if they had information and advice on what to do. Over 40% said that knowing the impact of their actions would motivate them to do more.  

“One of the insights that stands out…is the gap in public knowledge about what to do and which actions are most impactful. Of the top six household actions that people take regularly, only two are in the top six for real impact – avoiding food waste and saving on heating and cooling.” says Caroline Holme, senior director, GlobeScan. 

She adds that people need guidance from governments and businesses. For example, she says retailers should clearly label more sustainable products and communicate benefits, to help people prioritise the most impactful actions. 

In addition, the survey showed around two thirds of people want governments and businesses to take action to reduce climate change; and over 80% want them to take action to protect and restore nature.

Most popular people and planet actions

When it comes to the planet, people are taking most action in the area of waste, recycling and energy. Over 90% say they recycle, use their own shopping bags, avoid food waste, have energy efficient appliances, or save on heating and cooling. Actions such as eating meat free or generating your own energy, which rank second and third in terms of impact, are done by 38% and 24% of people respectively. 

The survey found that people are taking more climate action if it saves them money (up from 45% in 2019 to 58% in 2023), but cost is a barrier if taking climate action is more expensive. Nearly half of respondents said they don’t do more to reduce climate change because it is too expensive. Lack of government support is also a barrier.

The survey also asked questions about social issues. In terms of everyday actions to reduce inequality, the most common are learning about social issues (78%), talking to friends and family about inequality (76%), and buying from brands that pay a living wage (74%). Around two thirds of people worry about inequality.

In the webinar, Julia Olofsson, global director human rights and social impact at Ingka (which owns Ikea), said the company produces country-specific reports to identify localised expectations. The findings are shared in country workshops to generate specific actions suited to each market.

Simon Henzell-Thomas, Ingka’s global director climate & nature, outlined some of the initiatives Ikea is testing, especially in the area of circularity. For example, last year its ‘As is’ sell-back programme gave 42 million products a second life, its buy-back schemes were used by 105,000 people (twice as much as the year before), and it sold 21 million spare parts to 1.8 million people. 

He said that these schemes need to scale, but the figures are not insignificant. He also talked about the need to make sustainability affordable. For example, he noted that many people struggled to afford solar panels which Ikea offers as part of its clean energy services. It is currently looking at different business models to help people make such investments.

In a press statement, Karen Pflug, chief sustainability officer, Ingka Group said: “Sustainability needs to become affordable and accessible for the many, not the few. With our size and reach we are working hard to scale affordable solutions that enable our customers to take climate action in their daily lives. Making plant-based food and energy efficient products affordable are two ways we are supporting our customers on the journey.”

Links to the survey, press release and webinar can be found here.