In the race to combat climate change, we’ve been asking the wrong question. Instead of asking “How do we convince or force people to make sustainable choices?” we should ask “How do we make sustainable choices the preferrable choice?”
The most successful sustainable products don’t win because they appeal to environmental consciousness – they win because they make sustainability the better choice.
The Power of Friction-Free Sustainability
One of the simplest, yet most impactful, sustainability products is the Elkay ezH2O Bottle Filling station. Since its introduction in 2010, the filling station has become ubiquitous across America and has helped eliminate over 40 billion single use plastic bottles.
Its success isn’t rooted in environmental messaging or because the option to purchase single use bottles has been removed. Instead, it succeeds because it helps to make refilling a water bottle dramatically more convenient and lower cost than buying a disposable bottle. The station quickly fills bottles with cool filtered water, doesn’t require the user to touch any part of the machine, and provides added encouragement by counting the number of bottles saved. Using the machine is simply as better experience than hunting for a vending machine and paying for a single use bottle.
When being sustainable becomes the path of least resistance, behavior change follows naturally
Why Traditional Sustainable Products Often Fail
Sustainable solutions fail when they force users to sacrifice convenience for environmental benefit. Human behavior follows the path of least resistance. We’ll choose the easy option over the “right” option most of the time. Instead of fighting this tendency, successful sustainable products harness it.
Beyond Water Bottles: Applying Friction-Free Sustainability to Coffee
In the USA, Starbucks uses over 11.5 million disposable coffee cups per day (1.5% of all paper waste globally). The chain has tried to lower this impact by using cups with 30% recycled materials and implementing reusable cups for some in-store service.
The company could go a step further by implementing a better reusable coffee cup system. Imagine walking into Starbucks with a smart reusable cup that makes disposable cups feel like a hassle: As a reusable cup user, you skip to the front of the line and place your cup into a sanitization station, where it is quickly and automatically cleaned. Next, an embedded NFC or RFID chip tells the barista your desired order (that you set in app), and you’re automatically charged for the coffee. You receive a discount or additional loyalty points for making the sustainable choice. Forgot your cup? Pick up a sanitized one and drop it off at any Starbucks location later.
This experience would be faster, more personalized, and more convenient than using a disposable cup.
The framework that unites these products
- Create a better experience than the unsustainable alternative
- Solve multiple user problems simultaneously
- Provide immediate rewards
The Path Forward
Making sustainable choices the path of least resistance can drive massive environmental impact without relying on altruism or sacrifice. The question isn’t whether users care enough about sustainability. The question is: Can sustainable choices be so superior that users prefer them regardless of environmental impact?