A consumer-driven bioeconomy in housing? Combining consumption style with students' perceptions of the use of wood in mu
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SOCIAL DIMENSIONS OF A FOREST-BASED BIOECONOMY
A consumer-driven bioeconomy in housing? Combining consumption style with students’ perceptions of the use of wood in multi-storey buildings Eliisa Kylkilahti , Sami Bergha¨ll, Minna Autio, Jonne Nurminen, Ritva Toivonen, Katja La¨htinen, Heini Vihema¨ki, Florencia Franzini, Anne Toppinen
Received: 20 December 2019 / Revised: 31 May 2020 / Accepted: 8 September 2020 / Published online: 9 October 2020
Abstract Consumer acceptance of new bio-based products plays a key role in the envisioned transition towards a forest-based bioeconomy. Multi-storey wooden buildings (MSWB) exemplify a modern, bio-based business opportunity for enacting low-carbon urban housing. However, there is limited knowledge about the differing perceptions consumers hold regarding wood as an urban building material. To fill this gap, this study explores Finnish students’ perceptions of MSWB relative to their familiarity with wooden residential buildings, and then connects these perceptions to ‘consumption styles.’ Data were collected in the Helsinki metropolitan area via an online questionnaire (n = 531). The results indicate that the aesthetic appearance of MSWB are appreciated most by frugal and responsible consumers, whereas the comfort, environmental friendliness, and longevity of MSWB are important to consumers who identify themselves as ‘thoughtful spenders.’ The study suggests that both environmental and hedonic young consumers already familiar with the use of wood in housing contribute to a successful bioeconomy in the urban context. Keywords Consumer perception Consumption styles Sustainable bioeconomy Urban housing Wood Young consumers
INTRODUCTION Because of increasing urbanization, the demand for sustainable urban homes is on the rise. The European Union’s updated Bioeconomy Strategy (2018) labels wood materials as a measure to reduce carbon emissions in the construction sector, thereby enabling the transition towards sustainable bioeconomy. The EU’s aim towards a bio-
based circular economy promotes objectives like building development with low land-use, and the use of recyclable, innovative, and sustainable technologies. Because timber is a sustainable building material showing promise for innovative technical applications in building construction (see e.g., Ramage et al. 2017; Pelli and La¨htinen 2020; Toppinen et al. 2019), it is re-claiming popularity among policymakers and within the construction sector (Sposito and Scalisi 2019). Despite this re-awakening among industry and civil society stakeholders, the consumer-driven approach that builds on the consumer perceptions and experiences is missing from this discussion (Toppinen et al. 2018). In Finland, multi-storey wooden buildings (MSWB) were identified as the most evident business opportunity for a sustainable bioeconomy transition (Bosman and Rotmans 2016). Research suggests that increasing the use of wood in the construction sector has environmental benefits, as wood is a lightweight, renewable material (Gustavsson
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