Life cycle thinking and the use of LCA in policies around the world

Abstract

The chapter explains what Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) is about, why it is about taking a life cycle approach and shows that SCP-related policies have been developed at the intergovernmental level and in different regions of the world. A key element at the international level is the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on SCP adopted in 2012 and the global agreements on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted in 2015. Life cycle thinking has become mature, moving from its academic origins and limited uses, primarily in-house in large companies, to more powerful approaches that can support the provision of more sustainable goods and services through efficient use in product development, external communications, in support of customer choice, and in public debates. Now governments can use LCA for SCP policies. For this purpose LCA databases are needed. LCA is in particular relevant for policies focusing on design for sustainability, sustainable consumer information, sustainable procurement and waste management, minimization and prevention as well as sector-specific policies like sustainable energy and food supply. Examples of life cycle thinking and the use of LCA in policies are provided for numerous countries around the world but with a certain focus on the European Union. It can be expected that the use of LCA in policies for the sustainability assessment of products will further increase, also slowly covering more means of implementation such as incentives and legislative obligations.