University of Bath Study Highlights Challenges for Parents Trying to Reduce Carbon Footprint
Parents want to act on climate change but struggle with everyday life
A University of Bath study has found that many parents want to reduce their environmental impact but often struggle to turn good intentions into action.
Sam Hampton, a researcher at Bath and Oxford Universities, explained that the concept of “carbon capability” is about more than just knowing what to do. “Carbon capability essentially means the ability to make informed decisions about reducing our environmental impact, but also the ability to actually follow through with those decisions and adopt low carbon behaviours,” he said.
Parents face practical challenges in their daily lives that make low-carbon living difficult. Hampton highlighted the pressures families experience when trying to make environmentally friendly choices. “We could make more environmentally friendly choices, but actually, if there's one thing that one message that I have for parents, it's… talk to your kids, talk to other parents about climate change. We all know we could all be doing better. But actually, if we join together, we'll be more effective.”
He suggested that talking about climate change is often more effective than simply taking small actions on your own. “If there's one thing you can do for climate change, it's talk about it,” Hampton said.
Hampton also discussed community initiatives that can help parents make low-carbon choices while juggling family life. He gave the example of nearly-new sales, which are like car boot sales for children’s clothes. “Sometimes organise things like nearly new sales and they kind of… they represent a great opportunity to… it’s like a car boot sale but for clothes, the kids clothes and it's also a really good community kind of get together and you… they have like a cafe at the same time so it can serve multiple functions,” he said.
Reflecting on how parents manage both finances and environmental concerns, Hampton acknowledged that families are often trying to save money while making sustainable choices. He highlighted how second-hand school uniforms, for example, have become very popular. “Yeah,” he said in response to observations from local charities about the boom in second-hand school uniform sales.
Overall, Hampton emphasised that parents already know many of the things they could do, such as eating less meat, using less energy, travelling less, and flying less. But he believes the single most important step is open conversation. “Talk to your kids, talk to other parents about climate change. We all, we know, we all care about it and we could all be doing better. But actually, if we join together, we'll be more effective,” he said.
Hampton admitted that even he sometimes struggles to express complex ideas in simple terms, but stressed the importance of making the message accessible. “No, I think that's good. Thank you. Yeah, good questions. Yeah, I I struggle to like, I just, you know, I think, oh, I've nearly said something good, but then I like stumble over my words and I'm like, oh, that's, you know, you can’t find any.”
The research highlights the potential for parents to shape the environmental values of their children, provided they have support and guidance in translating intentions into low-carbon habits.