David Thomson on behavioural science for sustainability

Introducing David Thomson

Every week I suggest that this time is the topic of all topics to cover! Well let’s accept without great argument that sustainability, the future of our planet and ourselves, is right up there.

I’m welcoming David Thomson, VP and Head of the Sustainability Practice at BEworks. Dave is a cognitive experimental psychologist working with large multinational corporations and governments on behaviour change challenges such as electricity consumption reduction, adoption of energy efficient technology and food waste reduction; all of which we touch on in the podcast.

My partner BEworks

I'm proud to say that I’m publishing ‘A Load of BS: a practitioner's guide to the BS galaxy’ in harness with my partner BEworks, one of the very best behavioural science consultancies in the world, co-founded by Dan Ariely and Nina Mazar.

BEworks is a multidisciplinary team of behavioural scientists and psychologists working on complex challenges across financial services to healthcare to sustainability, helping businesses reimagine a future in which individuals flourish and prosper. If you're interested in what they're up to, you might check out their BEcurious blog or drop Wardah and the team a line at info@BEworks.com.

Take a look at our full line-up of guests here.

Show notes

• How do we bridge the values-action gap in sustainability?

• Who’s responsibility is it – companies’ or consumers’?

• The Tesla status symbol

• Giving immediate benefits to solve a long-term problem

• How prevalent is corporate greenwashing?

• How to help people reduce domestic electricity consumption

• Moving from small, isolated experiments to impact at scale

• What makes great experimental design?

• What mistakes has Dave made?

Next time on A Load of BS: A Practitioner's Guide to the BS Galaxy

Next week on the show, it’s our wrap of this practitioners series and joining me are Nate Barr and Shannon O’Malley from BEworks. We’ll talk about their highlights from the series, what they’ve learned, what’s surprised them; and where next for behavioural science…

Please share this with friends

If you have an interest in how behavioural science is applied in real life, and you think others would benefit from listening to these conversations, then please share the podcast with friends and on social media. Your support is what makes us tick! Thank you ❤️

Till next time,

Daniel

Podcast music: Tamsin Waley-Cohen's Mendelssohn's violin concerto