Shifting Awareness and Changing Social Norms and What Behaviors do we want to Drive Green InnovationThis is a featured page

What do we want to get out of this session?

  • Look at where cigarette smoking was and where it is now in American society. What caused that shift in mindset? Wearing bike helmets and seatbelts too.
  • How do we hold politicians to a higher standard in contributing to the social mindset shift? (maybe we should propose this for the next session) The driver must be from the ground up, and not from politicians.
  • Paul Wright's book entitled "Cultural creatives"- We fail to recognize that our value system is faulty so in fact, we, as the public, are often the problem, though we oftentimes take the moral high ground in wanting change. The book explains how to speak to people as if understanding people is a market and sustainability is our product.
  • We need to hear what people's answer is that they're willing to share. What are their values?
  • Consumers need to balance their values and their pocketbooks.
  • How do we determine what people's deductive reasoning is, however wrong it is, because people don't just do wrong. They often feel it is the right decision for that time.
The message to the public:

  • How did we as individuals come to the realization that ew need to be sustainable, efficient, etc.?
  • It comes back to our families, elementary schools, etc. but it starts with OUR generation and being an example. We need to read the green magazines, attend meetings like this one, talk to people, educate ourselves, etc. so we can spread that mindset.

The context:
  • The market is a huge driver of change. We separated the market from the earth, and we are going to pay for it later. How can we re-integrate those back together?
  • How do we tighten the balance on resource allocation?
Changing social norms:
  • We remember that Indian commercial with the tear flowing down his cheek. That dramatically changed everyday behaviors.
  • "Don't mess with Texas" is a great case study in changing behavior without changing what people care about (because you can't change what people care about)
  • Its unbelievably simple to educate people to change their behavior: Its all about articulating what you want people to do. Pick your audience and stick with it. There's no such thing as the "general public".
  • Social marketing- How to reach people with different value systems.
  • We can (got to) make this easier for people by tapping into their existing values.
  • Harness the difference in efficiency of say recycling, so you can control the worst of behavior that occurs in third world countries. Its a value proposition/incentive, and sell it!
  • How do you speak to a number of different value systems. Don Beck (author of "Spiral dynamics"), who helped end apartheid in South Africa, is coming to Austin in October and will address this.
  • How do you get people to realize their individual decisions have an impact on say farmers in South America through wages/employment, and themselves through climate change. We should look at feedback loops. We need to think in terms of systems
What else has an impact?
  • Cost of goods and shame- the only drivers of change????
  • Stories.
  • 95% of the decisions we make are based on the subconscious.
  • Social contagion. Your social circles that you and your social circles participate in effects your decisions. P&G is paying Gerald Aultman a huge amount of money on market research on this.


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RyanO7 		Latest page update: made by RyanO7 , Sep 16 2009, 3:51 PM EDT (about this update About This Update RyanO7 End draft (#3) - RyanO7

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