Toward sustainable development: Connecting systems thinking competency and carbon footprint knowledge

Abstract

Previous research on field of sustainable development has shown that individuals' systems thinking competency promotes and predicts their sustainability competency and pro-environmental behavior well. Systems thinking competency also enables us to focus more on large-scale climate change mitigation actions. Previous surveys indicated that Finns have changed their behavior for mitigating climate change, but this has been not reflected in decreased consumption-based calculated carbon footprints because large-scale mitigation measures have not materialized. The present study assessed Finns' systems thinking competency (n = 2006) and knowledge of how to reduce their household carbon footprint. The survey data collected were analyzed using explorative factor analysis, hierarchical regression analysis, t-test, and analysis of variance. The results indicate that Finns view their own systems thinking competency related to climate change as not very high, and heir assessments vary widely. Moreover, their knowledge of how to reduce their household carbon footprint is somewhat low and is geared toward small-scale mitigation actions. The results can be used to inform environmental policy and sustainability education priorities.