Shaping Green Choices: Consumer Behavior and the Path to Sustainable Development
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 22
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The focus of this Special Issue is on the critical interaction between consumer behavior and sustainability. It explores how individuals can make environmentally responsible choices and how behavioral insights, policies, and theoretical innovation can promote sustainable living. In addition to understanding consumer decision-making, this Special Issue will highlight practical solutions, such as effective waste management strategies, best-practice examples, and policy comparisons across countries. It will also present sustainable alternatives that are both actionable and accessible for consumers.
This issue can offer suggestions on how to shape consumer behavior to support sustainability goals. The scope includes empirical and theoretical contributions that examine drivers of green consumption, behavioral nudges, sustainable product preferences, and digital or regulatory tools that facilitate eco-conscious decision-making. Papers could focus on political analysis, innovations in waste management and sustainability, and community-driven sustainability initiatives.
The purpose of this Special Issue is to identify and disseminate scalable strategies that bridge the gap between sustainable intent and action. By showcasing evidence-based practices and innovative solutions, this issue seeks to improve consumer experience, inform and redefine politics, and guide businesses toward more sustainable production and consumer systems. Ultimately it contributes to the advancement of the UN sustainable development goals through a behavioral and practical lens.
This Special Issue will provide a timely and valuable supplement to the growing body of knowledge on sustainable development by specifically focusing on the behavioral dimension of sustainability in an area often mentioned but underexplored in a practical, policy-relevant context. Thus, this issue may be useful for individual decision-making with systemic tools, regulatory interventions, and real-world applications by suggesting alternative sustainable options and effective applications of policies, which are necessary for transformative changes. This issue will fill the existing knowledge gap by integrating behavioral sciences, environmental psychology, policy studies, and technological innovations within sustainability studies. Aligning with sustainability’s mission to define, monitor, and apply sustainable development concepts, this Special Issue makes a critical contribution by offering a measurable and adaptable model for shaping consumer choices. It supports integrated approaches by connecting individual behavior with broader socio-economic and environmental policy frameworks, thereby advancing both academic discourse and practical applications related to the sustainable development goals.
Dr. Prianka Sarker
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- sustainable consumption
- green consumer behavior
- environmental psychology
- behavioral economics
- sustainable lifestyles
- decision-making
- policy and consumer choice
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
