Values Underlying COMMITMENT AND CONSISTENCY

1
Values UnderlyingCOMMITMENT AND CONSISTENCY

• Wendi Momen
• International Environment Forum
• Consumer Citizenship Network
• Third International Conference
• Hamar, Norway, 15-16 May 2006

2
Values and Behaviour

• Consumer behaviour is influenced - perhaps even
  driven - by an individual's basic values and
  world view.
• All human actions and human societies are built
  on values
• If behaviour is inappropriate, changing the basic
  values and world view is important to motivate
  constructive changes in consumption.
• People are unlikely to change inappropriate
  behaviours unless their values and world view
  change.

3
Attempts to Identify Common Values

• Generally unsuccessful
• Focused on human rights abuses
• Considered by non-western cultures as western
  values only
• Generally centred on behaviours rather than
  principles
• Ore useful to focus on underlying principles

4
Sources of Values

• Worlds religions
• Philosophers
• Humanists
• Our own experience

5
What Does and Does Not Work

• Throwing money at problems
• Extreme wealth
• Materialism
• A shift to more spiritual values
• Individuals knowing their true identity and
  operating according to its dictates
• Society reorienting itself to its own reality

6
Useful Spiritual Values

• A cluster of practical virtues and values born
  out of a vision and understanding of the purpose
  for humanity that underpins our relationships
  with each other at every level - personal,
  family, community, national and global.
• Justice, trustworthiness, honesty, courtesy,
  patience, love, selflessness, etc.
• Spiritual principles are in use all the time - we
  just rarely identify them as such.

7
Moving towards Sustainable Consumer Behaviour

• understanding of the essentially spiritual nature
  of the human being
• a recognition of the inter-penetration between
  the physical and the spiritual
• development of a new work ethic
• stewardship of the earths resources
• ethical practices in government and business

8
Moving towards Sustainable Consumer Behaviour

• a consciousness of the concept of unity in
  diversity
• new forms of governance need to be developed
• fostering the advancement of women
• the development of the spirit of service and
  voluntarism
• the extension of virtues-based education

9
Moving towards Sustainable Consumer Behaviour

• the development of conflict avoidance and
  resolution through consultation
• the promotion of the family as the basic unit of
  the community
• purposeful living

10
Living Values

• Individuals endeavouring to change behaviours
  need to be supported by enabling legal and
  political environments
• We are no longer powerless as human beings to
  shape our future