The IPCC concludeThe IPCC concludes in their Special Report on Global Warming that limiting global temperature increase needs demand-side actions and lifestyle changes. Previous attempts to realise demand-side changes have been hampered by several factors: First, there is very limited quantitative data showing how much a proposed change in lifestyle would contribute to climate change mitigation. Thus, policy makers and citizens lack guidance to make informed choices. Second, there is still limited evidence of public acceptance of drastic changes. This has led to internationally uncoordinated policies and to policies that will very likely fall short on having sufficient impact. Third, policies have usually promoted changes of individual behaviour without addressing structural constraints or structural drivers of unsustainable lifestyles. This has led to policies that remain ineffective and frustrate citizens who wish to make positive lifestyle choices. We aim to address all three of the above issues, by connecting an analysis of individual lifestyle perspectives, on household level, with policies and socio-economic structures, on all levels from international to local. The analysis will be structured according to the emerging 1.5-degree lifestyles approach, which members of the consortium have helped to define. The advantage of a lifestyle-oriented approach is to link concrete transformations of lifestyle by individuals to transformations of the structural context by policies, economic, and societal institutions. This inclusive approach is original in terms of a research strategy. In practical terms, it is very promising as it offers concrete guidance and as it can be scaled to political, social, and economic capacities on regional to (supra-) national levels. We pursue our aims using quantitative and qualitative methods, country-level assessments and sector-based case studies, as well as innovative participatory formats and a broad range of communication methods.

Through our consumption behaviour we, individuals, are responsible for 72 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions. These are created by the way we live, travel, and eat and by what we buy. So far, the attempts to change people's habits by appealing to their rationale have not produced significant behaviour change. Aiming to help close the action gap between climate awareness and individual action, and to increase citizen participation in sustainability topics, the project builds a data-driven momentum for sustainable behaviour change across eight European countries. It does this by engaging citizens through a digital application to co-research, co-develop and uptake everyday life solutions for climate change, providing tools for the collection, monitoring and analysis of their environmental and consumption data. In the application, the citizens find out how their lifestyle and habits impact the environment. They will also see a list of smart everyday actions that are relevant to reduce their environmental impact. The application enables citizens to actively create data while monitoring their lifestyle induced climate impact and behaviour. The collected data will be used to improve the application itself, and, importantly to empower citizens to gain agency in research and policy-making. The ambition is to engage a total of four million EU citizens. The figure is based on the previous national success with a web-based carbon emission calculator, which is innovated further with the use of citizen science, by co-research at living labs, co-creating personalized sustainability plans, as well as with the integration of behaviour science knowledge into the co-research and design process. The overarching goal of PSLifeStyle is to co-create a web- and mobile-based sustainable lifestyle tool and open platform, that will enable, empower and encourage European citizens to take their personalized steps towards more sustainable lifestyles.

The global food system, responsible for up to 37% of GHG emissions, requires urgent transformation due to challenges from urbanisation and unsustainable diets. Additionally, climate change and biodiversity loss exacerbate the vulnerability of European food systems, as seen in recent climate-related disasters like wildfires and droughts, compounded by disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite food abundance in Europe, food insecurity threatens millions of European citizens, necessitating a comprehensive approach encompassing knowledge, technologies, behaviours, and policies that promote healthier and more sustainable food systems. Given citizen science (CS) as a potent tool for achieving these goals, SPOON takes the innovative approach to food insecurity by employing CS to empower citizens in creating a more inclusive and sustainable food environment. SPOON’s four main aims are to: deepen scientific knowledge about food environments; increase capacity of policymakers in data-driven decision-making; foster cross-sector collaboration; increase agency of citizens to change their food consumption behaviour and local food environments; and foster more confidence in citizens in sharing personal food data. SPOON bridges the intention-action gap towards healthier and more sustainable diets by placing citizens at the forefront of transforming the food system through CS integration. SPOON's conceptual framework centres around six CS Labs in Europe, coordinated by local partners and utilising a multi-actor approach. Citizens engage as both researchers and subjects, testing and validating innovative digital tools to collect, analyse and interpret data on their food consumption behaviors and local food environments to then co-design and run small-scale behaviour change interventions together with other stakeholders. SPOON prioritises GDPR compliance and FAIR principles in its data management.