Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Curbing single-use plastic with behaviour change interventions

Solving the plastic waste problem requires pre- and post-consumption actions. Behaviour change interventions — including nudges, norm messages and education — offer opportunities to reduce demand for single-use plastic while industry-wide solutions and governmental policies are developed and expanded.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. MacLeod, M., Arp, H. P. H., Tekman, M. B. & Jahnke, A. The global threat from plastic pollution. Science 373, 61–65 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. UNEA Resolution 5/14 entitled End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument (UNEP, 2022); https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/39812/OEWG_PP_1_INF_1_UNEA%20resolution.pdf

  3. Morales-Caselles, C. et al. An inshore–offshore sorting system revealed from global classification of ocean litter. Nat. Sustain. 4, 484–493 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Truelove, H. B. & Gillis, A. J. Perception of pro-environmental behavior. Glob. Environ. Change 49, 175–185 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Alpizar, F. et al. A framework for selecting and designing policies to reduce marine plastic pollution in developing countries. Environ. Sci. Policy 109, 25–35 (2020).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Heidbreder, L. M., Bablok, I., Drews, S. & Menzel, C. Tackling the plastic problem: A review on perceptions, behaviors, and interventions. Sci. Total Environ. 668, 1077–1093 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Asensio, O. I. & Delmas, M. A. Nonprice incentives and energy conservation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 112, E510–E515 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Cialdini, R. B. & Jacobson, R. P. Influences of social norms on climate change-related behaviors. Curr. Opin. Behav. Sci. 42, 1–8 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Verplanken, B. & Whitmarsh, L. Habit and climate change. Curr. Opin. Behav. Sci. 42, 42–46 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Maki, A. et al. Meta-analysis of pro-environmental behaviour spillover. Nat. Sustain. 2, 307–315 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Heather Barnes Truelove.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Truelove, H.B., Raimi, K.T. & Carrico, A.R. Curbing single-use plastic with behaviour change interventions. Nat Rev Earth Environ 3, 722–723 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-022-00356-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-022-00356-y

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing