Barnet tests 'nudge' economics

Allegra Stratton, political correspondent
The Guardian,
Thursday August 21 2008

Barnet will next month become the first local council to receive government funds to test "nudge" economics. The Tory-run council has been given £100,000 by the Department for Communities and Local Government to experiment with ways of encouraging people to reduce litter, recycle and lower carbon emissions.
The pilot is the first sign of fresh government interest in the ideas of behavioural economics since the Conservatives claimed Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein's "nudge" philosophy as their own. Thaler and Sunstein argue that social change is best brought about by working with human nature. The Tory leader, David Cameron, placed their book, Nudge, on his party's summer reading list.
Ed Gillespie, of communications firm Futerra which is designing the pilots, said: "One way of boosting recycling might be to offer top recyclers smaller bins to demonstrate they have reduced their waste. It gives people an aspiration to throw less away." It also suggested handing out free energy meters to show people their exact usage. He said: "It can make people slightly obsessive about turning things off."
The government has developed policies based on behavioural economics before: the new pension system requires people to opt out rather than opt in.