(by Didi Rankovich | Claim the Network) – The Behavioral Insights Team (BIT), started by the UK government and then in late 2021 owned by Nesta, which describes itself as an independent charity focused on innovation, has published a new report.
And although its authors present it as a useful “guide” to building “a net zero society”, what observers critical of this content have taken away from it is that it is promoting and detailing various forms of psychological manipulation of people.
The problem that the Behavioral Insights Team (aka the “Nudge Unit”) has found itself solving is part of the climate change narrative, where achieving “net zero” means eliminating greenhouse gas emissions.
And they don’t seem to care if the way to get there is through direct manipulation of people, specifically online, through cues (“columns”) to make decisions that aren’t really theirs but serve the purpose of agenda.
These choices affect and consume people’s everyday lives: what they wear, what and how much they eat, how they travel to work, whether that work is “climate friendly”, how they travel in general and where to go, for example on holiday . Read the full article >
