The European Union has highlighted the issue of environmentally sound use of products in the context of Integrated Product Policy, IPP. Accordingly, consumers should have easy access to understandable, relevant and credible environmental information. Information about product characteristics is available in different forms and sources, but in many cases, relevant environmental information is not available on the product itself. The study described in this report was initiated in order to produce information on the state of user instructions regarding environmental information. User manuals of passenger cars and refrigerators were focused on, examining the advice which could diminish the harmful environmental effects of the use of these products. Other studied products included such durable products as textiles and furniture as well as such consumables as cleaning chemicals and recyclable paper products. The study raised many ideas about actions that could promote the status and 'eco-development' of instructions for use.

The European Union has highlighted the issue of environmentally sound use of products in the context of Integrated Product Policy, IPP. Accordingly, consumers should have easy access to understandable, relevant and credible environmental information. Information about product characteristics is available in different forms and sources, but in many cases, relevant environmental information is not available on the product itself. The study described in this report was initiated in order to produce information on the state of user instructions regarding environmental information. User manuals of passenger cars and refrigerators were focused on, examining the advice which could diminish the harmful environmental effects of the use of these products. Other studied products included such durable products as textiles and furniture as well as such consumables as cleaning chemicals and recyclable paper products. The study raised many ideas about actions that could promote the status and 'eco-development' of instructions for use

Product-related environmental information is an important policy instrument for a shift towards more sustainable consumption patterns, and such information helps consumers choose environmentally improved products. While ecolabeling has had a particularly strong breakthrough in Nordic markets, a number of other communication modes, such as environmental product declarations and producers' self-declared claims have been applied in both the consumer and business-to-business markets. This report comprises a summary of recent research on how Nordic consumers perceive, understand, and use product-related environmental information. A comprehensive literature review supplemented with expert interviews forms the foundation for this work. The report highlights well-researched areas and proposes areas where deeper knowledge and understanding is required. The research was conducted cooperatively between the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics (IIIEE) at Lund University in Sweden; the National Consumer Research Centre in Finland; and Environice in Iceland with the purpose to obtain and present a comprehensive picture of the situation in the Nordic countries.

After the recent financial and economic crisis, greening the economy has become a major focus for international and national discussions: How to combine forceful and effective action to meet climate change and other environmental challenges with stronger and more sustainable economic development, in both developed and developing countries. This synthesis report on the Nordic countries' environmental policy experiences, focuses on the use of economic instruments and how this policy has contributed to the integration of environmental concerns into economic growth and development policies. The report demonstrates that the Nordic countries have been successful in achieving substantial reductions in several major pollutants and clear improvements in local and regional environmental quality, while maintaining an internationally respectable rate of economic growth. This decoupling of economic development from growth in emissions has been achieved through a range of policy instruments, with a strong and increasing element of economic, market-based instruments. The challenge, and the opportunity, for the Nordic countries is to strengthen and deepen such policies, with even more effective design of and combination of policy instruments, to deal with new and remaining threats to the local, national and international environment.