The gentle push based on a “nudging approach”: from personal well-being to collective sustainability

Nudging is a powerful tool that can influence both personal and community-oriented behaviours by subtly guiding decisions without restricting freedom of choice. This paper explores how nudges can be applied across various contexts to promote personal well-being and collective sustainability, including domains such as personal health, financial security, public safety, and pro-environmental actions (“green nudges”). Examples include default enrolment in retirement savings plans, which encourages individuals to save for the future without mandating participation, or default organ donor registration, where individuals are automatically registered as donors unless they opt out—an approach that significantly increases donor rates. In the context of public safety, interventions such as real-time speed limit feedback are forms of visual cues that help reduce hazardous driving and increase road safety. On a community level, green nudging strategies, such as default enrolment in renewable energy programs, eco-labelling, and the promotion of sustainable transportation, become significant in reducing environmental impacts and fostering sustainability as a common good. This, therefore, exemplifies how nudges can align self-serving behaviours, such as the safety of an individual, with community-serving actions that benefit society in general. The paper concludes by emphasizing the critical role of behavioural public policy in enabling these choices, while also addressing key limitations, criticisms, and alternative approaches.