Tackling sustainability Whac-A-Mole: a repository for environmental problem shifting cases across the globe

Sustainability challenges are like a game of Whac-A-Mole: solving one problem often leads to new ones. To aid research and policy, Utrecht University researchers have launched a database platform of problem-shifting cases derived from a global survey with input from 300 experts.

screenshot of the problemshifting database website front page

Collective effort towards a sustainable future

The Problem Shifts Database is a repository of over 100 environmental problem shifting cases across different issue areas like climate, biodiversity, ocean, freshwater, agriculture, and hazardous waste from all around the globe. 

The data has been collected through an expert survey launched in 2022. It is open to anyone to use, and it is also a living database to which anyone can contribute to build an open source knowledge base available to researchers and decision-makers in the field of sustainability. Through this platform, the researchers aim to foster greater understanding and knowledge surrounding the phenomenon of problem shifting and contribute to the collective efforts towards a sustainable future. 

The database is regularly updated on the basis of new submissions. To submit a problem shifting case, please use this form.

Problem shifts are everywhere

Problem shifts occur when the policies and decisions directed at solving an environmental problem lead to new and sometimes more chronic and severe environmental problems. For example, to reduce emissions from petrol, bioethanol has emerged as a type of biofuel that is blended with petrol or used as a substitute fuel. To meet the growing demand for bioethanol, more and more land is needed to grow crops, which can lead to deforestation and the associated loss of biodiversity. It also requires large amounts of water, which can lead to water scarcity, and causes high levels of acidification and eutrophication, mainly due to the use of fertilisers.

Problem shifts are everywhere. But we tend to think of them as benign or inevitable. But are they really? We don't really have a good understanding of where problems often shift from/to, why, by whom, and to what effect. “This is important to understand if we are to make transitions to sustainability effective and equitable,” explains platform lead Dr. Rak Kim, an associate professor at the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development.

Preliminary observations

A preliminary analysis of the collected cases has revealed some interesting observations. 

  • Most problems originate in climate and atmosphere, followed by energy and land, food and agriculture and end up in biodiversity and wildlife/nature.
  • Problem shifting not only creates new problems but often also frustrates efforts to address the original problem or has no positive impact.
  • Overall, each individual case of problem shifting has multiple negative effects. In particular, cascading domino effects are common.
  • Energy transitions need to be approached with caution, as most of the problem shifts occur through energy measures, for example biofuels.
  • Politicians and the private sector are driving more than half of all problem shifts, but scientists, governments and civil society are also involved.
  • Problem shifts are more often than not unintended, yet their negative effects are often anticipated. 
  • In most cases, some attempts were made to stop problem shifts, but these were largely ineffective. Those that worked were mostly due to governance intervention.

The Problem Shifts Database is developed and maintained by the PROBLEMSHIFTING project, and hosted by the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development at Utrecht University. The project has been funded through a European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant (agreement no. 949252).