Living sustainably in a Danish eco-community: how social and physical infrastructures affect carbon footprints

The Self-Sustaining Village (SSV) is a Danish eco-community aiming to advance communal sustainable living. Using a questionnaire survey based on self-reported consumption, the study estimates residents’ carbon footprints and life satisfaction. SSV residents’ average carbon footprint is 60% below the national Danish average while life satisfaction is higher than the national average. Long-term participant observation explains reductions across energy, transport, food, and other consumption as outcomes of specific physical and social infrastructures that make sustainable choices default and convenient, without sacrificing comfort. Collective decisions and shared facilities enable residents to live more sustainably and enjoy richer social lives and higher life satisfaction, offering a model of living happier with less.

Quentin Gausset, Pia Duus Jensen