Can We Tweet, Post, and Share Our Way to a More Sustainable Society? A Review of the Current Contributions and Future Potential of #Socialmediaforsustainability

Abstract

Social media is changing how people connect, create, and share content and is an integral force shaping modern society. Given the significant environmental challenges society faces, this review considers (a) how social media is currently contributing to the development of a more sustainable society and (b) directions for future work such that researchers and practitioners may more effectively utilize this technology. At present, case studies, anecdotal evidence, and research demonstrate that social media is contributing to sustainability in diverse ways including behavioral interventions utilizing social media elements; social and political activism; supporting/generating sustainable business practices and addressing corporate “greenwashing”; increasing access to, and the potential quality of, environmental education; and through citizen science projects. Although this work is promising, there is an urgent need for further and more methodologically rigorous research, which evaluates the specific impacts of social media technology on sustainability outcomes, i.e., proenvironmental knowledge, attitudes, and — in particular — behavior.