ABSTRACT
Definitions of sustainability are of course diverse and contested. But using up resources faster than they can be replaced is counter to the most foundational understandings of sustainability. Conventional ideas of change in relation to consumption then are generally very incremental. Mainstream messages on sustainable consumption have it that many small changes in individual actions will add up to bigger change in overall resource consumption. The distinctive sensitivities that a practice approach brings have been applied to understanding consumption as embedded in the rhythms, routines and embodied goings-on of everyday life. In fact, rather than assuming permanence, as some critics seem to believe, practice theory starts from an understanding of all social relations as essentially mutable. Practice theory analyses have some way still to go to realise the potential of a radical theoretical position and fully engage the broader debates over the changes needed for consumption to be sustainable.
