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Giving legs to handprint thinking: foundations for evaluating the good we do
  • +9
  • Joseph Guillaume,
  • Suvi Sojamo,
  • Miina Porkka,
  • Dieter Gerten,
  • Mika Jalava,
  • Leena Lankoski,
  • Elina Lehikoinen,
  • Michael Lettenmeier,
  • Stephan Pfister,
  • Kirsi Usva,
  • Yoshihide Wada,
  • Matti Kummu
Joseph Guillaume
Aalto University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Suvi Sojamo
Aalto University
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Miina Porkka
Stockholm Resilience Centre
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Dieter Gerten
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
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Mika Jalava
Aalto University
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Leena Lankoski
Aalto University
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Elina Lehikoinen
Aalto University
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Michael Lettenmeier
Aalto University
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Stephan Pfister
ETH Zurich
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Kirsi Usva
Natural Resources Institute Finland
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Yoshihide Wada
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
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Matti Kummu
Aalto University
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Abstract

In environmental management and sustainability there is an increasing interest in measurement and accounting of beneficial impact - as an incentive to action, as a communication tool, and to move towards a positive, constructive approach focused on opportunities rather than problems. One approach uses the metaphor of a “handprint”, complementing the notion of environmental footprints, which have been widely adopted for impact measurement and accounting. We analyse this idea by establishing core principles of handprint thinking: handprint encourages actions with positive impacts, connects to analyses of footprint reductions, but adds value to them, and addresses the issue of what action should be taken. We also identify five key decisions that need to be made in performing a (potentially quantitative) handprint assessment, related to scoping of the improvement to be made, how it is achieved, and how credit is assigned, taking into account constraints on action. A case study of the potential water footprint reduction of an average Finn demonstrates how handprint thinking can be a natural extension of footprint reduction analyses. We find that there is a diversity of possible handprint assessments that have the potential to encourage doing good. Their common foundation is “handprint thinking”.
Jun 2020Published in Earth's Future volume 8 issue 6. 10.1029/2019EF001422