Examining changes in household carbon footprints across generations in the UK using decomposition analysis

Abstract

To meet climate targets, consumption-based household emissions need to fall rapidly. An important but still poorly understood question is whether generational change could contribute to decreases in emissions. It is sometimes assumed that younger generations such as Millennials and Generation Z are more concerned about climate change and have greener lifestyles than previous generations of the Silent Generation, Baby boomers, and Generation X, but carbon footprinting analysis typically focuses on age groups rather than comparing generations over time. This paper provides a first assessment of the change in consumption-based carbon footprints of the Silent, Baby boomer, Generation X, and Millennial generations within the United Kingdom between 2001 and 2020 and a comparison of the footprints of different generational groups. The analysis is based on environmentally extended input–output analysis, using the Living Costs and Food Survey and emission data from the UK multi-regional input–output database. We find some evidence for the hypothesis that younger generations have smaller footprints than older generations as Generation X and Millennial households have smaller carbon footprints compared to the generation before them at a similar life stage. We find that factors such as decarbonization, household occupancy, total expenditure, and changing consumption patterns contribute to the UK's changing carbon consumption emissions between 2001 and 2020, and the importance of these factors varies for different generational groups. However, future research that uses a longer time series is required to assess generational differences in carbon footprints over the whole lifespan of several generations.