Marketing for Sustainable Development

9Environmental Regulations and Awareness-raising Campaigns: Promoting Behavioral Change through Government Interventions

Leila ELGAAIED-GAMBIER and Laurent BERTRANDIAS

Toulouse Business School, France

9.1. Introduction

In 2019, the French government was sued for “climate inaction”. Known as “the case of the century”, this initiative was led by four NGOs, including the Nicolas Hulot Foundation, which was behind the petition that received over 2 million signatures. Similar intiatives were seen in other countries (for example, the Netherlands, the United States), reflecting the high expectations civil society has of governments in terms of climate change. In 2020, the (in)action of political decision-makers is still at the heart of many mobilizations. It currently seems that the question is no longer about whether states should intervene, but how they should intervene to reduce the effects of climate change.

The French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) regularly publishes calls for projects intended to create a dialog between researchers and decision-makers. The aim is clear: “develop recommendations for public policies”.¹ Researchers are invited to present potential interventions in support of sustainable development, while also describing how such measures would be operationalized. While this willingness to get researchers to participate in considerations is a positive development, it also highlights how difficult it is for the public authorities to suggest ...