Universal basic services and sustainable consumption. Issue 1 (1st January 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Coote, Anna
• Is Part Of: Sustainability. Volume 17:Issue 1(2021)
• Page Start: 32
• Page End: 46
• Publication Date: 2021-01-01
• Subjects: Universal basic services -- public consumption -- sustainable development -- collective action -- human needs -- welfare state renewal; Sustainability -- Periodicals; Environmental sciences -- Periodicals; Ecology -- Periodicals; Natural resources -- Management -- Periodicals; Ecology; Environmental sciences; Natural resources -- Management; Sustainability; Periodicals; Periodicals; 338.927
• DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2020.1843854
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1548-7733

Abstract

Abstract: Discussions about sustainable consumption corridors tend to focus on private consumption. This Policy brief explores the contribution that public consumption may provide in maintaining lower and upper corridor boundaries. Recently developed proposals for "universal basic services" (UBS) are offered as a framework for understanding the potential of public consumption in this context. Drawing on a multi-disciplinary literature, the policy brief seeks to define and analyze the concept of universal basic services in theoretical and practical terms. It considers how far they may contribute and what their limits are, and briefly examines the extent to which this approach complements or conflicts with proposals for universal basic income (UBI).