Germany should develop a binding strategic framework for “good enough”, in the form of a national sufficiency strategy to reduce emissions as well as energy and raw material consumption, a group of three research institutes said in report late last month.

Sufficiency approaches in housing, mobility, food and agriculture, and consumption sectors in particular hold great potential for making systems more resilient quicker and at a lesser cost, Clean Energy Wire reports, citing analysis by the Europa-Universität Flensburg, the Wuppertal Institute and the Öko-Institut.

“Only when sufficiency is no longer understood as an individual decision but as a political design task can its full potential for climate protection, social justice, and resilience be realised,” the researchers wrote. Sufficiency, they said, goes beyond the frequent debate on doing without, and is essential for achieving social and ecological goals.

Sufficiency in Germany’s buildings sector, for example, would mean making better use of existing building space, with better distribution (relocations, conversions, and sublets) going a long way in easing the housing shortage. In mobility, it could be promoted through car-sharing schemes or by prioritizing active mobility. In agriculture, the report calls for better incentives for farmers, while supermarkets could tackle food waste by reducing prices of items near their sell-by dates. In the consumption sector, promoting a “sharing culture” by municipalities for items rarely used could promote sufficiency, as could “right to repair” and other regulations.

The researchers pointed to a wide toolbox for promoting sufficiency policy—including the design of infrastructure, availability of services, regulations, and incentive systems that enable sufficient behaviour. What’s missing, they said, is an overarching strategy and the political will to implement it.

“Many politicians do not dare to tackle sufficiency because they are afraid of being punished at the next election,” said Jonas Lage, research associate at the Europa-Universität Flensburg. “Yet, there are examples at many political levels of successful, smoothly functioning sufficiency policies with a high level of approval.”

Sufficiency policy should create the framework conditions in which a reduction does not mean sacrifice, but rather empowerment, liberation, and enrichment, the authors concluded. Reaching the country’s climate targets will only be possible with a new sufficiency approach, German government advisors said in 2024.

This post was originally published by Clean Energy Wire under Creative Commons licence.