Quantifying carbon reduction from dietary behavioral changes in Taiwan

Achieving net-zero emissions requires not only technological transitions but also changes in everyday lifestyle choices. Although many governments promote green lifestyle behaviors, few studies quantify how much carbon reduction different behaviors can realistically achieve. This study develops the Green Lifestyle Economic Behavior (GLEB) Model, a consumption-based framework that uses Taiwan’s data to estimate carbon emissions associated with dietary consumption. By decomposing emissions into two components – consumption quantity and carbon intensity – we evaluate multiple dietary behavioral scenarios. The results show that, when accounting for both per-capita carbon reduction and the likelihood of widespread adoption, eating locally and seasonally and choosing unprocessed foods offer the highest aggregate reduction potential. The GLEB Model provides a systematic method for governments to prioritize lifestyle-based mitigation policies and identify high-impact behavioral interventions. The findings demonstrate that individual actions matter; targeted behavioral changes can unlock meaningful carbon reductions with minimal disruption to daily life.