High Energy Use for Fun and for Necessity : What Stops the UK from Achieving Well-Being at Low Energy

How energy facilitates human need satisfaction, for whom, and with what wellbeing outcomes is under-researched. We address this gap by investigating the relationship between household energy footprint and well-being in the UK. Our results show car and air transportation contributed the most to the total energy footprint of the rich and high-energy users. We observe high inequalities in energy distribution and emphasize the role of the top energy users with high well-being in driving excess energy use. A more detailed analysis reveals that individuals with protected characteristics are especially vulnerable to energy poverty and their contribution to overall energy demand is negligible.Focusing on well-being steers the attention towards questions of sufficiency, overconsumption as well as the context within which we satisfy needs. In terms of lock-ins - tackling issues of energy poverty and inequalities are important for further lowering energy demand and need to be addressed in relation to climate justice