The Behavioral Science of Real Estate Energy Labels, Reuven Sussman PhD Ep77

How to Save the World | The Psychology & Science of Environmental Behavior

In today’s episode, we chat with behavioral and environmental psychologist, Dr Reuven Sussman, head of the Behavior and Health Program at The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE). He conducts research about, and advocates for, energy efficiency in buildings and transportation - a sector that makes up the lion's share of carbon emissions.

Dr Sussman is an adjunct professor at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, and currently sits on the editorial board of The Journal of Environmental Psychology and The Journal of Social Psychology.

We dive into his recent paper he authored titled “Context and Meaningfulness in Energy Efficiency Labeling for Real Estate Listings” which explores the real nitty gritty of how to get home energy labels to work and exactly how to design them.

We discuss the psychological foundations of how people respond to these labels, the kind of policy that is required to get them going, and how they can best be used to influence the real estate market to decarbonize buildings and drive greener choices.

We also talk about another important concept called “framing” which is a technique that can be used to help sell the often tricker and more demanding energy efficiency upgrades to homeowners.

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How to Save the World is a podcast about the psychology of what gets people to do eco-behaviors and take climate action: Environmental engineer, designer, and author, Katie Patrick, hunts down the latest behavioral science literature from top universities such as Harvard, MIT, and Stanford to unearth the evidence-based teachings you can use to rapidly get more people to adopt your environmental campaign, program, or product.

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