As COP30 unfolds and leaders, experts, and civil-society actors once again debate how to speed up the transition and tackle global warming, one idea is resurfacing: consuming less energy. Here’s why.
In her “Petit traité de la sobriété énergétique,” Barbara Nicoloso, director of Virage Energie, asserts that our modern societies live in a state of permanent energy inebriation. The winter of 2022 in Switzerland would be a good example: the shutting off of the Russian gas tap had indeed sent bills soaring, and the threat of shortages loomed. “Every kilowatt-hour counts!” the Confederation repeated at the time, launching an energy-saving campaign urging the population to lower heating, use less hot water, and turn off the lights.
It was in this context that the MOSES Unit (Mobilization, awareness, economy and energy sobriety) linked to the Directorate of Energy of the canton of VAUD (DIREN) commissioned the UNIL Competence Centre in Sustainability to produce a synthesis on the concept of consuming less energy.
“La Revue de littérature sur la sobriété énergétique” published in December 2024, proposes a transition that goes far beyond simply turning off the Wi‑Fi at night. This work is currently being studied within the State of Vaud, which moreover appointed a special officer a little less than two years ago. the idea of consuming less is gaining ground. The notion was moreover introduced for the first time in the latest IPCC report.
“This concept is neither efficiency nor eco-actions,” states Jean-André Davy-Guidicelli, co-author of “La Revue de littérature sur la sobriété énergétique.” He specifies that according to the IPCC definition, consuming less refers to the set of daily measures and practices that avoid demand for energy, materials, land and water, while ensuring the well-being of all human beings within planetary limits. “Energy is only one the parameters; it also encompasses notions of resources, well-being and social consideration, a true notion of better living collectively,” explains this PhD candidate in ecological economics.
This conception is clearly distinct from energy efficiency. Replacing traditional bulbs with LEDs is efficiency; agreeing to light less is consuming less. “If energy efficiency allows using less energy to satisfy a need, consuming less consists in reducing the need at the source,” reminds the négaWatt association Switzerland. This nuance is essential to prevent the rebound effect, that sneaky trap where savings are canceled out by overconsumption: you drive more with a less thirsty car, you finance a plane trip thanks to heating savings.
NégaWatt Switzerland identifies four dimensions: structural (reorganizing space to limit needs), dimensional (choosing appropriately sized equipment), use-related (using them with discernment) and convivial (sharing them). To encompass these dimensions, the Competence Centre in Sustainability speaks of “systemic energy restraint,” a term that goes beyond simple eco-actions. The example of the “15-minute city” illustrates this approach: it aims to organize territory so that services and essential needs are accessible within a 15-minute walk.
“If energy efficiency allows using less energy to satisfy a need, sobriety consists in reducing the need at the source,” specifies the négaWatt association Switzerland.
According to the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), Switzerland emits nearly 14 tonnes of CO₂ per person per year: more than double the global average, estimated at around 6 tonnes. If all humanity consumed like we do, it would take 2.87 planets to meet our needs, reminds the WWF.
Moreover, to meet the objective — already out of reach — of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, the carbon footprint should fall to 0.6 tonnes per person by 2050. The road is therefore immense, especially for the wealthiest: the richest 1% of the country, responsible for 195 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per person per year, would need to reduce their impact by a factor of 200, according to “La Revue de littérature sur la sobriété énergétique.”
To this climate urgency is added an energy vulnerability: Switzerland imports 70% of its energy, more than half of which is of fossil origin. The Competence Centre in Sustainability’s document also recalls that “the modes of operation of our societies are the origin of the ecological and energy crisis, and depend on our political and social structures.”
Given these constraints, some restraints therefore holds considerable potential. In Switzerland, it could reduce energy consumption by 10% by 2030 and by 30% by 2050, in addition to the mere efficiency measures planned by the 2050 Energy Strategy.
Its benefits would especially extend far beyond the energy question alone. “And they are numerous!” assures Jean-André Davy-Guidicelli: environmental and health benefits — through reduced pollution — economic benefits through lower bills, political benefits with strengthened energy security, social benefits by creating connections… not to mention some time savings.
“At the global scale, the issue becomes an imperative of planetary social justice,” recall the authors of “La Revue de littérature sur la sobriété énergétique.” According to them, “the reduction of energy consumption in Western countries is an indispensable condition for a better distribution of wealth and a reduction of global inequalities in access to resources.”
Between the idea and its implementation, a gap remains. Changing our habits is far from obvious when our infrastructures, lifestyles and collective representations run counter to the concept of sobriety. Research carried out at the UNIL Competence Centre in Sustainability highlighted several sources of resistance.
This idea of consuming less bumps into a significant obstacle: collective representations. “Today, it is perceived very negatively. It evokes lack, penny-pinching, even asceticism,” observes Jean-André Davy-Guidicelli.
To remedy this, it is necessary to mobilize imaginaries and build new narratives capable of making this concept desirable. “Art and culture — cinema, theater, literature — can help shape a collective narrative that transforms our perception,” he continues. Science fiction plays a particular role: by describing “imaginary worlds that allow us to step back and question our functioning through a mirror effect.”
Its implementation also requires accepting certain renunciations. “We must move from an additive logic to a substitutive logic: abandon certain overly energy-intensive practices, while taking into account the material and emotional attachments linked to them,” emphasizes the researcher. For every infrastructure, every good carries uses and habits that need to be accompanied, rather than abruptly broken off.
Finally, the choice of words is decisive: speaking of “energy security” or “territorial resilience” rather than “restraint” can reduce fears, overcome divides and encourage buy-in.
“Enshrining values such as sobriety or harmony with resources in the Constitution would help structure the collective imagination and guide concrete action,” believes Jean-André Davy-Guidicelli, co-author of the “Literature Review on Energy Sobriety”
For Jean-André Davy-Guidicelli, “enshrining values such as consuming less or harmony with resources in the Constitution would help structure the collective imagination and guide concrete action.”
Note that some lines are beginning to move: Zurich has already enshrined the circular economy in its Constitution; during the votes of September 28, 2025, while the people of Vaud buried the “Save the Mormont” initiative, they voted for the canton authorities’ counter-proposal entitled “Circular Economy” with 67.8% in favor.
The proliferation of initiatives — in Jura, Aargau, Basel — shows an evolution in mentalities. It is also felt up to the federal level, with the parliamentary initiative “20.433 – Developing the Circular Economy in Switzerland”. Now adopted, it includes real obligations to better close material cycles and encourage sustainable practices.
According to “La Revue de littérature sur la sobriété énergétique,” this transition will require a “democratic ecological planning” including participation of all actors, public debates, citizen involvement, an equitable sharing of efforts as well as more social justice. For the years to come, the concept of consuming less will not be imposed by decree: it will be built collectively.
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