Demand-Driven Climate Mitigation in the United States: Challenges and Opportunities to Reduce Carbon Footprints from Households and State-Level Actors

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dc.contributor.advisorBaiocchi, Giovannien_US
dc.contributor.authorSong, Kaihuien_US
dc.contributor.departmentGeographyen_US
dc.contributor.publisherDigital Repository at the University of Marylanden_US
dc.contributor.publisherUniversity of Maryland (College Park, Md.)en_US
dc.date.accessioned2022-09-23T05:30:32Z
dc.date.available2022-09-23T05:30:32Z
dc.date.issued2022en_US
dc.description.abstractSubnational and non-governmental actors have great potential to push for bolder climate actions to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. A consistent and accurate quantification of their GHG emissions is an important prerequisite for the success of such efforts. Although an increasing number of subnational actors have developed their climate mitigation plans with medium- or long- term goals, whether these progressive commitments can yield effectiveness as planned still remains unclear. This dissertation research focuses on two large groups of climate mitigation actors in the U.S. – households and state-level actors – to improve the understanding of potential mitigation challenges and shed light on climate policies. This dissertation consists of three principle essays. The first essay reveals a key challenge of emission spillover among state-level collective mitigation efforts in the U.S. It quantifies consumption-based GHG emissions at the state level and analyzes emissions embodied in interstate and international trade. By analyzing major emission transfers between states from critical sectors, this essay proposed potential policy strategies for effective climate mitigation collaboration. The second essay addresses unequal household consumption and associated carbon footprints in the U.S., with a closer look at different contributions across income groups to the national peak-and-decline trend in the U.S. This analysis further analyzes changes in consumption patterns of detailed consumed products by income groups. The third essay proposed a framework to link people’s needs and behaviors to their consumption and associated carbon footprints. This framework, built on existing models that connect carbon footprints with consumer behaviors, extends to people’s needs with simulation over time. Such an extension provides a better understanding of carbon footprints driven by various needs in the context of real-world decision-making. Based on this framework, this essay selects a basket of behavioral changes driven by changing fundamental human needs and analyzes associated carbon footprints. The dissertation identifies opportunities and challenges in demand-driven climate mitigation in the U.S. Its findings provide implications for effective climate actions from state-level actors and households.en_US
dc.identifierhttps://doi.org/10.13016/ebvx-zmal
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/29233
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.subject.pqcontrolledEnvironmental economicsen_US
dc.subject.pqcontrolledClimate changeen_US
dc.subject.pqcontrolledSocial researchen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledBehavior changesen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledClimate mitigationen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledGreenhouse gas emissionsen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledHousehold consumptionen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledSubnational climate governanceen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledSupply chainsen_US
dc.titleDemand-Driven Climate Mitigation in the United States: Challenges and Opportunities to Reduce Carbon Footprints from Households and State-Level Actorsen_US
dc.typeDissertationen_US

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