Exploring perceptions of sustainable proteins and meat attachment

Purpose: This study sought to explore consumer perceptions of more sustainable protein alternatives to conventional meat. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed methods design of interviews and an online survey identified key drivers and barriers to the consumption of (1) laboratory-grown meat, (2) edible insects, and (3) plant-based meat substitutes, with meat attachment accounted for in analyses. Differences between personal preference and perceptions of alternative proteins’ role in addressing global environmental concerns were also explored Findings Findings indicated that plant-based substitutes were favoured for personal consumption for moral and ethical reasons and edible insects were least favoured due to aversion. Meat attachment was significantly associated with personal willingness to consume alternative proteins in each of the three cases. Results challenged previous research that had proposed that when considering the effectiveness of certain alternatives in addressing global environmental issues, people may advocate them but not want to consume them personally. Results imply that the congruity of these perceptions is more complex. Research limitations/implications: Avenues for future research, including applications for exploring tailored marketing are suggested based on the preliminary findings of this study Originality/value: This study asked consumers to consider three alternative proteins alongside one another for the first time, exploring how meat attachment is associated with perceptions and quantifying the congruity of consumers’ personal perceptions and global perceptions of these alternative proteins

How might home practices be impacted by children’s engagement with multimedia environmental education at school?

Given the potential of music and artwork to engage people in environmental issues and learners in educational settings, and the lack of research on how primary school children engage with environmental education, this thesis aimed to explore the impact multimedia environmental education had on primary school pupils, their families and the environmental practices they carried out within the home using qualitative methods and social practice theory. Pupil engagement and underlying factors that helped or hindered any process of change were also studied. Observations of lessons and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 Key Stage 2 pupils, aged between seven and 12 years old, from four primary schools across Essex, Gloucestershire and Dorset in the UK. Interviews were also conducted with pupils’ families and teachers. Findings showed how pupils engaged with the multimedia environmental education programme in different ways, including actively, passively and not at all, and although pupils experienced some difficulties with the content, the songs and animations were engaged with positively, with pupils enjoying them and remembering their environmental lessons as a result. Different strategies were used by family members when discussing and actioning the environmental education, namely nagging and asking of permission by children, with family members both supporting and resisting requests, such as via ‘counter nags’. Limited impacts were found on practices within the domains of travel, energy and waste management, with numerous underlying factors impacting any process of change. By applying social practice theory to explore how primary school pupils engaged with multimedia environmental education, the impact this education had on families’ environmental practices in the home and underlying factors that impacted any process of change using qualitative methods, this thesis contributed to theory, literature, methodology and environmental education practitioners and policy. Avenues for future research, limitations, and the impact of COVID-19 are discussed

Environmentally sustainable food consumption : a review and research agenda from a goal-directed perspective

The challenge of convincing people to change their eating habits toward more environmentally sustainable food consumption (ESFC) patterns is becoming increasingly pressing. Food preferences, choices and eating habits are notoriously hard to change as they are a central aspect of people's lifestyles and their socio-cultural environment. Many people already hold positive attitudes toward sustainable food, but the notable gap between favorable attitudes and actual purchase and consumption of more sustainable food products remains to be bridged. The current work aims to (1) present a comprehensive theoretical framework for future research on ESFC, and (2) highlight behavioral solutions for environmental challenges in the food domain from an interdisciplinary perspective. First, starting from the premise that food consumption is deliberately or unintentionally directed at attaining goals, a goal-directed framework for understanding and influencing ESFC is built. To engage in goal-directed behavior, people typically go through a series of sequential steps. The proposed theoretical framework makes explicit the sequential steps or hurdles that need to be taken for consumers to engage in ESFC. Consumers need to positively value the environment, discern a discrepancy between the desired versus the actual state of the environment, opt for action to reduce the experienced discrepancy, intend to engage in behavior that is expected to bring them closer to the desired end state, and act in accordance with their intention. Second, a critical review of the literature on mechanisms that underlie and explain ESFC (or the lack thereof) in high-income countries is presented and integrated into the goal-directed framework. This contribution thus combines a top-down conceptualization with a bottom-up literature review; it identifies and discusses factors that might hold people back from ESFC and interventions that might promote ESFC; and it reveals knowledge gaps as well as insights on how to encourage both short- and long-term ESFC by confronting extant literature with the theoretical framework. Altogether, the analysis yields a set of 33 future research questions in the interdisciplinary food domain that deserve to be addressed with the aim of fostering ESFC in the short and long term

Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino

3400 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109aerial view, pool, October 26, 200

Luxor Las Vegas

3400 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109aerial view, view east, October 26, 200

Excalibur Hotel and Casino

3400 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109aerial view, October 26, 200

Luxor Las Vegas

3400 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109aerial view, northwest view, October 26, 200