The Influence of User Behaviour on Energy Use in European Shopping Centres

European society spends increasing amounts of time in shopping centres. There is an urgent need to reduce energy use and to provide stakeholders with the tools to develop the next generation of sustainable shopping centres. The intention here is to identify how user behaviour, in particular owners, managers, tenants and customers, influences energy performance in European shopping centres. The causes of energy use are often primarily technical; but user behaviour influences whether actions to reduce energy use are implemented and how effective the actions are. Customers are not interested in energy use or sustainability issues when doing their shopping, and this influences how shopping centres act with regard to energy use reductions. This has implications for their sustainability and suggests a design potential in shopping centres, one which lies in considering social and behavioural issues alongside the implementation of more technical aspects associated with energy use in retail environments.