Abstract
Many social science researchers agree that overconsumption of resources and consumer goods is a major problem in Western culture today, particularly in the United States. Thus, promoting sustainable behavior among the public in rural and urban areas alike is important. Although existing research offers suggestions for promoting sustainable behaviors among environmentally-motivated audiences, a void remains with respect to encouraging non-environmentally-motivated individuals to adopt more sustainable behaviors. In response, I conducted a formative experiment aimed specifically at: 1) fostering participation among non-environmentally motivated individuals in sustainable living educational programming events, and 2) promoting subsequent behavior change among those participants in the direction of more sustainable lifestyles. This article focuses on the first goal, and specifically on the role of key informant involvement in achieving increasing levels of participation for each of the four iterations comprising this project. This strategy has the potential to improve participation in similar programming among various target audiences, including those in the rural areas familiar to JRSS readership.
Recommended Citation
Wynveen, Brooklynn. 2014. "Promoting Participation in Sustainable Living Educational Programming Events Among Nonenvironmentally-Motivated Individuals: The Importance of Key Informant Involvement." Journal of Rural Social Sciences, 29(2): Article 1. Available at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/jrss/vol29/iss2/1
Publication Date
12-31-2014
