Abstract for: Societal dynamics of low-carbon lifestyles

Lifestyle change is considered an important demand-side measure for climate change mitigation. To understand the relationships of low-carbon lifestyles with the global environmental and socioeconomic dynamics, and the main drivers of such lifestyles, there is a growing need for modelling studies that combine societal transformation with the integrated assessment of climate, environment and economy. This paper presents an exemplary modeling study that extends an integrated assessment model with psycho-social mechanisms to explore societal dynamics. Based on the findings of this modelling study, the paper then discusses the potential contribution of system dynamics modelling to investigate the societal dynamics and drivers of low-carbon lifestyles.