Environmental Collective Action: Residential Recycling Programs

Abstract

Many civil and environmental engineering projects involve the amelioration of environmental problems. Attempts to avoid future and solve current environmental problems are more and more likely to include the inducement of behavior change on a wide scale. The attempts will involve individual‐level environmental collective actions: individual‐level, because they require widespread participation in particular individual behaviors; environmental, because they involve protecting, maintaining, or improving the physical environment; and collective action, because they involve the production of collective goods—that is, goods that, once produced, are not excludable from the members of a group for which membership does not depend upon contributions toward provision of the collective good. This paper presents individual‐level environmental collection actions of interest to civil and environmental engineers, examines the conditions under which participation occurs, and explores the appropriate level of involvement of engineers and nonengineers. It is concluded that engineers should take primary roles in the design of programs involving physical facilities and equipment, and that nonengineers can provide critical insight.