MINISERIES - Mindfulness for Sustainability: 3 Lessons from Science
In the two previous articles of the Mindfulness and Sustainability series, we explain what mindfulness is and how it relates to adopting a sustainable lifestyle through key mechanisms such as improving our subjective well-being, reducing materialistic values, and enhancing our connectedness to nature. Science has continued to support the effectiveness of mindfulness and its impact on the adoption of sustainable lifestyles, by demonstrating that it increases our cognitive flexibility, adaptability, compassion, and self-awareness. This article highlights three takeaways from the science of mindfulness and how it helps foster sustainable behaviours.
#1 Mindfulness rewires the brain
Growing globalisation and overconsumption are playing a significant role in driving the world towards an unsustainable future. It is clear now more than ever that alongside technological innovations, there is a need to make our lifestyles more holistic and inclusive of planetary boundaries. Mindfulness offers a way for us to shift our thoughts and behaviours to be kinder towards ourselves and the planet.
In fact, research in neuroscience shows that mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) interventions — an 8-week meditation intervention — can rewire the brain. It can indeed result in enhanced activities in the brain regions concerning learning and memory processes, emotion regulation, perspective-taking, and self-referential processing i.e., processing information relevant to oneself (e.g. how one could be impacted by future events).
Given its proven effectiveness, let’s have a look at some examples wherein science has demonstrated mindfulness as a promising strategy to encourage pro-environmental behaviours.
#2 Behaviour change through mindfulness is a reality
Although the science around mindfulness does require more robust evaluation measurements and long-term studies to strengthen its efficacy, its potential to change behaviour from the roots is often validated. Here are a few examples:
A study extensively compared the lifestyles of non-meditators, beginners with less than a year of experience (and infrequent practice e.g. once or twice a week), and advanced meditators with over a year of experience (and frequent practice, e.g. three to four times a week). Results showed that, regardless of one’s level of experience in meditating, meditators had a lower diet-related environmental impact when compared to non-meditators. Additionally, advanced meditators showed a more self-determined and strong internal motivation to engage in pro-environmental behaviours in general. Interestingly, advanced meditators also reported high levels of connectedness with nature and subjective happiness.
Connecting consumers to producers could be one way of allowing consumers to be mindful of their consumption patterns, as they learn to better understand the value of the products they buy. An intervention for the sustainable consumption of coffee included an audio-guided mindful tasting of the product among participants of the study. This type of mindfulness-based intervention for tasting has been put in place in the past (e.g. in consuming coffee, eating raisins) where it was observed to increase an individual’s sensory perception i.e., the individual’s senses are heightened and the overall experience of the activity is enhanced and perceived as enjoyable. Participants who took part in the mindful coffee tasting indeed evaluated the product better than those who were provided with other forms of interventions or no intervention at all (control group) as depicted in the image below. This research suggests that the positive evaluation of the product as a result of the mindful tasting could potentially lead to the increased consumption of sustainable, better-quality coffee. Future research could diversify the products among which this is tested.
Mindfulness training in schools could encourage sustainable consumption among individuals from an early age. In Berlin, 15-year old students were given mindfulness training for 8-weeks, where this intervention included consumption-related elements in the areas of clothing and nutrition i.e., mindful eating practices and mindfulness meditations on compassion highlighting the connection between clothes production and usage. Post-intervention, students reported engaging in sustainable diets (e.g. trying to be vegetarian for a month) and providing another life to their old clothes/shoes instead of immediately throwing them away upon slight wear and tear.
It is important to note that there is some conflicting research on the effectiveness of mindfulness on sustainable consumption behaviours. However, regardless of its impact on behaviour change, research has shown that mindfulness tends to improve well-being and reduce materialistic values which the authors suggest could potentially make consumption behaviours more sustainable in the long run.
#3 Mindfulness: a one-stop shop
Mindfulness is multifaceted in the benefits it brings. Research suggests that it is beneficial both as an individual intrinsic trait as well as an external practice. Along with showing increased engagement in pro-environmental behaviours, it was found that those who showed an intrinsic trait to be mindful i.e., not through external interventions, were also more likely to report higher motivation and response when dealing with the impacts of the climate crisis. Specifically, they were more likely to report belief in climate change, better coping with the impacts of climate change (climate adaptation), and have non-fatalist attitudes i.e., not giving up in the face of future events. The authors of this study suggest that being mindful “can make people better able to cope with stress and adapt to new circumstances, by minimising automatic, habitual, or impulsive reactions and increasing cognitive flexibility.”
The power of mindfulness is yet to be fully explored and given the exacerbating rate at which the climate crisis is worsening, there has never been a better time to do so than right now. In the words of Christine Wamsler, a professor at the Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies, “Mindfulness can not only change how we think about the social and environmental crises that affect our world but can also help us to take the actions needed to build a more sustainable society.”
6 tips to kick-start your mindfulness journey today:
Start by understanding the basics of mindfulness so you are well informed: https://www.mindful.org/how-to-meditate/#basics
Take a 5-minute break from work to practice mindfulness every day. Try doing it at the same time to make it a habit!
Focus on the meal you are eating. Get rid of any distractions (TV, phones, laptop screens, etc.) and pay attention to the texture, taste, and how the food makes you feel.
Download a mindfulness app of your choice (e.g. Headspace) to receive guided support in your practice.
Be realistic with the time you allot i.e., set small goals and eventually scale-up
Ask a friend to join you so you can keep each other motivated!
Hölzel, B. K., Carmody, J., Vangel, M., Congleton, C., Yerramsetti, S. M., Gard, T., & Lazar, S. W. (2011). Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain grey matter density. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, 191(1), 36–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pscychresns.2010.08.006
Thiermann, U. B., Sheate, W. R., & Vercammen, A. (2020). Practice Matters: Pro-environmental Motivations and Diet-Related Impact Vary With Meditation Experience. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.584353
Weber, H., Loschelder, D. D., Lang, D. J., & Wiek, A. (2021). Connecting consumers to producers to foster sustainable consumption in international coffee supply – a marketing intervention study. Journal of Marketing Management, 37(11–12), 1148–1168. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257x.2021.1897650
Böhme, T., Stanszus, L., Geiger, S., Fischer, D., & Schrader, U. (2018). Mindfulness Training at School: A Way to Engage Adolescents with Sustainable Consumption? Sustainability, 10(10), 3557. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103557
Geiger, S. M., Fischer, D., Schrader, U., & Grossman, P. (2019). Meditating for the Planet: Effects of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Sustainable Consumption Behaviors. Environment and Behavior, 52(9), 1012–1042. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916519880897
Wamsler, C., & Brink, E. (2018). Mindsets for Sustainability: Exploring the Link Between Mindfulness and Sustainable Climate Adaptation. Ecological Economics, 151, 55–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.04.029