TOWARD SUSTAINABLE LUXURY: EXPERT CONSENSUS, CONSUMER PSYCHOLOGY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

This PhD thesis, developed within the MUSA project (spoke 5: sustainable fashion, luxury, and design), examines how luxury can be reconfigured to align with sustainability through four complementary studies: (1) a two‑round Delphi with international experts and MUSA Spoke 5 members with the aim of prioritising operational and cultural interventions; (2) a systematic literature review exploring consumer perceptions, attitudes, values, and behavioural drivers towards eco-friendly cosmetic packaging; (3) an empirical study in the cosmetics and packaging domain assessing preferences and needs of Italian consumers along with an investigation of their values, attitudes and willingness to purchase sustainable packaging through the lens of the psychological theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1985, 1991); and (4) qualitative interviews with environmental educators about their experiences, challenges and needs. Key findings show traceability, fair labour practices, and circularity as consensus priorities; they also reveal that health and social framings could drive consumer receptivity to sustainable packaging along with environmental appeals and furthermore highlight educators’ pivotal role as mediators who translate technical transparency into public understanding. The thesis argues that sustainable luxury requires alignment across three domains: operational feasibility (supply‑chain governance and measurable checkpoints), symbolic meaning (narratives that preserve craftsmanship and quality), and interpretive capacity (education and communication that build trust). It recommends verified transparency, redistributive contractual mechanisms, and targeted educational resources to convert legitimacy into equitable outcomes. Moreover, it reframes luxury from a commodity category to a socio‑cultural system whose future legitimacy depends on fairness, and quality and aesthetic excellence into its core. Ultimately, sustainable luxury is presented as a transformative aesthetic of value, one that binds beauty to responsibility for people, place, and time.