Products Made from Recycled Materials: A Study of Public Perceptions and Willingness to Buy in Yola-Jimeta, Northeastern Nigeria.
ABSTRACT
Products that are made from recycled materials or are sustainably produced are becoming more common and popular globally as people become more environmentally aware.
However, these products are often expensive or not widely available.In developing countries, additional obstacles to adoption of such products are lack of awareness and affordability.
In this study, I investigated public perceptions of, and willingness to buy, products made from recycled materials in Yola-Jimeta, northeastern Nigeria.Using a structured questionnaire, I interviewed 175 adult shoppers.
Using cross-tabulations and logistic regression modeling, I evaluated the influence of demographic factors and level of environmental concern on how willing shoppers were to buy and pay more for three products (bag, basket, and mat) made from plastic bag waste.
I also evaluated the role of an educational flyer in affecting public willingness to buy or pay more for these products.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CERTIFICATION…………. ii
READER’S APPROVAL... iii
DEDICATION.......... iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.....v
ABSTRACT...........vi
LIST OF FIGURES... x
LIST OF TABLES.....xi
CHAPTER 1.......... 1
INTRODUCTION.......1
Waste Management Practices and Health Implications…... 2
Recycling.....6
Consumer preferences toward green products…...8
Environmental attitudes and behaviors........10
Factors that affect purchase decision.......11
Consumers & green products in developing countries and Nigeria....13
HYPOTHESES......16
AIMS & OBJECTIVES..... 16
CHAPTER 2...17
MATERIALS & METHODS... 17
Study Site........... 17
Sampling........... 17
Data Collection........ 19
Data Analysis...........20
Ethical Guideline....... 21
CHAPTER 3............22
RESULTS.......... 22
Description of Respondents......2
Environmental Concern and Awareness..... 22
Factors influencing buying preferences of environmentally friendly products......... 23
Consumer Preferences..........25
Effect of educational information....... 27
CHAPTER 4.......... 30
DISCUSSION...... 30
Limitation and challenges…....... 33
Recommendations to AUN’s sustainability program...... 34
CHAPTER 5......36
CONCLUSION........ 36
REFERENCES..........45
INTRODUCTION
Waste production has been an inevitable problem in the history of mankind. As human populations continue to grow, so does the production of waste.
Waste production increases faster than the rate of urbanization. Every year, 1.3 billion tons of solid waste is produced globally (Hoornweg & Bhada-Tata, 2012).
Waste production is predicted to increase to 2.2 billion tons by 2025 and more than double in low-income countries in the next 20 years (Hoornweg & Bhada-Tata, 2012).
In the United States alone, about 250 million tons of trash is produced every year (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2010).
Waste production increases with a rise in a country’s standard of living. As the economic wealth of a country increases, the country’s consumption also increases, which results in the potential increase in the amount of waste produced (Achankeng, 2003).
REFERENCES
Arbuthnot, J. (1977). The Roles of Attitudinal and Personality Variables in the Prediction of Environmental Behavior and Knowledge. Environment and Behavior, 9(2), 217–232. doi:10.1177/001391657792004
AUN Office of Sustainability. (2013). Annual Sustainability Report 2012_2013.pdf (Annual Report No. 1). American University of Nigeria, Yola.
AUN Office of Sustainability. (2015). Annual Sustainability Report 2014_2015.pdf (Annual Report No. 3). American University of Nigeria, Yola.
BBC. (2017, August 28). Kenya plastic bag ban comes into force after years of delays. Retrieved from bbc.com: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa- 41069853
Bhaskaran, S., Polonsky, M., Cary, J., & Fernandez, S. (2006). Environmentally sustainable food production and marketing: Opportunity or hype? British Food Journal, 108(8), 677–690. doi:10.1108/00070700610682355
Biswas, A., & Roy, M. (2015). Green products: an exploratory study on the consumer behaviour in emerging economies of the East. Journal of Cleaner Production, 463-468.
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