Religious Minimalism for a Journey Towards Net-Zero Carbon Footprint

The journey towards net-zero emissions requires transformative changes in consumption patterns and individual lifestyles. Yet empirical benchmarks for viable low-carbon lifestyles remain limited in existing scientific literature. On the contrary, philosophy of Jainism, a century-old religion prominently preached in India, emphasizes minimal consumption and non-violence as its core ethical principles, providing a unique opportunity to quantify the environmental impact of systematically restricted lifestyles. This cross-sectional study quantifies annual carbon footprints of Jain ascetics from three sects: Svetambara Sthanakvasi (n=17), Svetambara Terapanth (n=10), and Terapanth Samani sub-group (n=14), and compares them with those of average Indian layperson. Lifestyle variables, including food consumption, transportation modes, electricity usage, clothing ownership, and water consumption were collected through panel interviews and converted into CO₂ equivalent estimates using standard emission factors. Results demonstrate that all three ascetic groups maintain substantially lower carbon footprints than the average Indian layperson. Electricity consumption and transportation modes emerged as primary differentiators, while food emissions remained constant across all ascetic groups due to shared vegetarian dietary practices and periodic fasting. Water consumption represented a reduction of 91.6% compared to typical Indian household consumption. This study offers the first empirical evidence for how key Jain ascetic practices includinglimited electricity use, walk-based mobility, minimal material possessions, vegetarian diets with fasting, etc. align with net-zero annual emission goals. By translating qualitative lifestyle patterns, as observed through interviews, into measurable carbon outcomes, this research provides a rare behavioural benchmark for sustainability policy and shows that net-zero compatible lifestyles are not theoretical, but already practiced at scale within an existing community.