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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Apelmo, Elisabet, et al.
(författare)
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Kan stadsbors användning av IT bidra till ett hållbart samhälle? : En kunskapsöversikt.
- 2014
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This report deals with everyday habits with environmental impacts in relation to the use of information and communication technology (ICT, colloquially referred to as IT).We raise issues related to a) how environmentally promising and problematic ‘ICT-practices’ in urban everyday life can be identified and b) how the potential for such practices to be transformed through the use of ICT can be assessed, and ultimately utilized, in the context of sustainable urban development.These issues we have addressed through reviewing case studies, reports etc. Case study examples showed how ICT is used, e.g. to streamline and inform, or to share resources, vehicles and other products.We discussed how it might be possible, from an environmental sociology perspective, to assess when and how ICT might serve as an enabling technology that enhances or replaces previous patterns of action. We also briefly included, and discussed, phenomena defined from more general sustainability science point of view, e.g. substitution, induction and rebound effects.An important starting point was that social structures both enable and limit specific patterns of action. The structures can only be said to exist, or be maintained, by people's actions and through their experience. Change occurs as a result of the dynamics between people's actions and the structures created by past actions. Social practices are constantly being reproduced, with additions of new elements, e g when ICT applications are put to new uses. Then patterns of social relations and systems might also change, for example in how we use energy, travel, consume or socialize during both work and leisure time.Our review indicates that the knowledge that partners of Centre for Sustainable Communications (CESC) currently have access to, is fragmented and with a bias towards certain types of sectors, and patterns of action. Environmentally promising practices are more researched than problematic ones. Furthermore, use of ICTs for e.g. commuting and monitoring household energy use is more researched than most other patterns of action involving use of ICTs. Research on e.g. leisure and entertainment in relation to the environment is very much absent from today’s body of knowledge (as it is defined and delimited in this report).As for how everyday practices might change towards increased environmental sustainability by the use of ICT, we have found the knowledge situation even more incomplete. This shows, however, that it is worthwhile for CESC researchers and partners to carry on searching and developing knowledge regarding this.Regarding what should be viewed as more promising respectively more problematic urban patterns of action, we have to some extent illuminated this by exemplifying international environmental sociological research that is useful for discussing social practices in relation to environmental impacts. We have exemplified how this can shed light on some of the case studies we found among the CESC researchers and partners. Based on environmental sociology we discussed in what ways city dwellers with high income account for the most environmentally problematic practices. Correspondingly, we discussed how inhabitants with low income – out of necessity–account for many promising practices. In relation to this we also briefly discussed how rebound effects should be seen as related to socio-economic position.Another kind of problematic aspect highlighted is that players responsible for introducing, trying out etc., new ICTs, seem to have a tendency to do this in own networks or among the urban middle class. This is problematic from a democratic point of view. In 2012, 1.2 million people in Sweden did very rarely, or not at all, use the internet in their homes. Detailed knowledge about this group's ICT related practices seems to be largely missing. If representatives for these groups are not represented in environmental research there is a danger that they also become less visible in public debate of environmental and ICT issues.This means that different social positions imply different opportunities and constraints. What patterns of actions people take more or less part in is influenced by social structures, norms and regulations, the historical and the immediate context, but also by the individuals' previous experiences and knowledge. The understanding of how a change towards a more sustainable society could come about through use of ICT therefore requires knowledge of practices among the full socio-demographic range of city dwellers.
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| 4. |
- Apelmo, Elisabet, et al.
(författare)
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Kan stadsbors användning av IT bidra till ett hållbart samhälle? En kunskapsöversikt
- 2014
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Rapporten behandlar vardagliga handlingsmönster med miljökonsekvenser i förhållande till användning av informations- och kommunikationsteknologi (IKT, vad som i dagligt tal benämns som IT). Våra frågeställningar har gällt a) hur miljömässigt lovande respektive problematiska handlingsmönster i stadsbors vardag kan identifieras samt b) hur potentialen för handlingsmönster att omvandlas genom användning av IKT kan bedömas, och i slutändan även utnyttjas, inom ramen för städers hållbara utveckling. Frågeställningarna har vi belyst genom de studier och exempel på handlingsmönster vi funnit i vår kunskapssammanställning. Rapporter och fallstudier visar på hur IKT används för att exempelvis effektivisera och informera, respektive dela på användning av resurser, produkter och fordon. Utifrån den miljösociologiska basen menar vi att det går att bedöma när och hur IKT eventuellt kan fungera som en möjliggörande teknik som förbättrar eller ersätter tidigare sätt att agera på. Det är även möjligt att diskutera de mer allmänt vetenskapligt definierade fenomen, som substitution och induktion, som vi också behandlat i kunskapssammanställningen. Vi har tagit upp hur samhällsstrukturer både möjliggör och begränsar samtidigt som de faktiskt endast kan sägas existera, eller upprätthållas, genom människors handlingar och i deras minne. Förändring uppstår i dynamiken mellan människors handlingar och de strukturer som har skapats av tidigare handlingar. Genom att handlingsmönster reproduceras med vissa nya inslag, som då IKT får nya användningsområden, förändras mönster av sociala relationer och system för hur vi exempelvis använder energi, reser, konsumerar eller umgås under såväl arbete som fritid. Vår litteraturgenomgång antyder att den kunskap som CESC partners tillsammans har tillgång till i dagsläget kan beskrivas som splittrad och med slagsida mot vissa typer av handlingsmönster och sektorer. Miljömässigt lovande handlingar är mer utforskade än problematiska sådana, liksom IKT-användning för pendlingsresor och hushållens energianvändning är mer utforskade än det mesta annat som människor använder IKT till. Forskning rörande fritid och underhållning i relation till miljö lyser i stort sett helt med sin frånvaro. När det gäller hur vardagliga handlingsmönster kan förändras mot mer miljömässigt hållbara sådana genom användning av IKT är kunskapsläget ytterligare något svagare och mer splittrat. Detta visar emellertid att det är intressant för oss att sammanställa och utveckla kunskap inom projektet och hela centret (CESC). Frågan om hur man miljösociologiskt kan definiera vad som är mer lovande respektive mer problematiskt ur miljösynpunkt har vi i någon mån belyst genom att visa på internationell miljösociologisk forskning som är användbar för att diskutera handlingsmönsters miljökonsekvenser, exempelvis i förhållande till vissa av de fallstudier vi funnit bland projektets forskare och partners. Till exempel pekar miljösociologisk forskning mot att invånare med störst inkomster i allmänhet står för de mest problematiska levnadssätten eftersom de har störst konsumtionsutrymme. Men när det gäller de mest lovande levnadssätten är det tänkbart att det är stadsbor med låga inkomster som – av nöden tvungna – står för dessa. Även så kallade rebound-effekter (rekyleffekter) bör vara klassberoende. Vad de ekonomiska vinster eller besparingar som görs på ett område verkligen används till hänger samman med inkomstnivå samt socio-ekonomisk position i ett vidare perspektiv. Vi menar oss ha belyst en problematisk aspekt i att aktörer som ansvarar för att ta fram och testa ny IKT har en tendens att främst göra detta i egna nätverk eller främst bland urban medelklass. Detta är problematiskt ur demokrati-synpunkt. År 2012 var det 1,2 miljoner människor som inte eller mycket sällan använde internet i sina hem. Detaljerad kunskap om denna grupps IKT-relaterade handlingsmönster verkar i stort sett saknas. Om dessa inte inbegrips i miljöforskningen finns risk att det ytterligare bidrar till att gruppens villkor, handlingsmönster och behov inte uppmärksammas i samhällsdebatten. Olika sociala positioner medför olika möjligheter och begränsningar. Vilka praktiker människor väljer påverkas av sociala strukturer, normer och regelsystem, av den historiska och den omedelbara kontexten, men också av individers tidigare erfarenheter och kunskaper. För att kunna förstå möjligheterna för en förändring mot ett mer ekologiskt hållbart samhälle krävs det ytterligare kunskap om olika gruppers handlingsmönster eller så kallade sociala praktiker.
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| 5. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Cargo Bike Pool : A way to facilitate a car-free life?
- 2014
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Ingår i: Resilience – the new research frontier. Proceedings of the 20th Annual International Sustainable Development Research Conference (ISDRC 2014) Trondheim 18-20 June 2014. - Trondheim. - 9788291917344 ; , s. 273-280
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In planning for sustainable cities, there is a need to take into consideration alternative transportation modes and facilitate the use of these, for the types of trips that people tend to use cars for. One way to mitigate car dependency in everyday life could be by using a cargo bike for these types of trips.The purpose of this paper is to map in what ways a specific trial of providing access to a cargo bike pool in a housing association affected both people’s travel habits and how they reimagined the types of trips that could be done at all or done in another way in order to find car-free travel and transportation modes. In this paper we focussed on the residents who actually used the cargo bikes.This qualitative study shows that although many of the residents did indeed lead car-free everyday lives, they got the opportunity to do other types of trips that they had not even thought about beforehand or deemed too difficult to do without a car. The cargo bike proved to fit into the portfolio of sustainable travel modes that facilitate everyday transports. The way that trips are imagined has also changed, that is what a cargo bike can be used to in relation to car, regular bike and public transportation.Having access to a cargo bike through a vehicle pool means that the possibilities to live a car-free everyday life are facilitated and in the long run a sustainable transportation pattern is being put in place.
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| 6. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, et al.
(författare)
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Getting there and back again : Commuting and ICT in six cities across the globe
- 2012
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Ericsson ConsumerLab performed a qualitative exploratory study of how people experience daily commuting in three different countries. This report aims to present the outcome of the study in such a way that the data can be useful for further analyses and studies of commuting in relation to ICT use and environmental sustainability. Based on the study’s findings this report will present analytical data on: i) how ICT can be linked to everyday travel in order to facilitate commuting from the user’s point of view; and ii) how ICT solutions can enable commuting in an environmentally more sustainable way.The study, which had an ethnographic approach, showed that in general, commuters would like their commuting time to be, or at least seem, as short as possible. The respondents spend hours commuting every week and often claim to consider it a waste of time. Regardless of means of transport, they would like to get the most out of their commuting time (working, socialising, relaxing etc.), which implies that there is a demand for further technological improvements in this area (voice recognition services in cars, privacy settings in public transport, connectivity in public transport, etc.). An aspect that adds to how people perceive their commuting time concerns the extent to which its duration is predictable – even if the time cannot be shortened, commuters at least want to know how much time they will spend on their daily commute, so that they can plan their day with more certainty.Irrespective of means of transport, two major frustrations for commuters are lack of flow and the presence and behaviour of other people. People seem to lack good real-time information enabling them to avoid interruptions in their commute and much of their frustration relates to poor infrastructure conditions and management. Frustration with other people derives from their conduct in traffic contributing to inconveniences, congestion or hazards, or from noise, smell or littering on public transport.The greatest motivators for commuting by car are a feeling of independence in relation to other people, schedule and choice of route, and the private space the car offers. This means that the car provides flexibility in terms of when and how people travel, while also providing a private space both mentally (“in the car you can do whatever you want”) and physically (“you don’t have to hustle with others on the bus or train”). The major frustration when commuting by car is the need to focus on driving, so drivers cannot utilise time as they would wish.People generally justify their choice of public transport by anti-car arguments, which include difficulty in finding a parking space at work, expensive parking, fear of driving, lack of driving licence etc., but can also motivate their choice as giving them ‘me-time’ without having to focus on driving. The major frustration with commuting by public transport is dependency on time schedules and the shortcomings of the public transport network. This is exacerbated by a lack of relevant information or available options. However, commuting can be improved in a variety of ways for car and public transport users with the help of ICT. From a sustainability perspective, it is important to exploit the potential of ICT solutions to facilitate more environmentally friendly practices.Many of the ICT (Information Communication Technology) solutions identified in this report require reliable access to the internet and/or mobile phone network. The mobile phone is currently the single most important internet device while commuting, thus perhaps being the point of departure for many of the solutions, such as travel planner, ticketing options, etc, but for car users mobile phone services need to be adapted through better in-car voice recognition technologies, since the focus needs to be on driving. Current information services could be more personalised and contextualised in order to better suit the individual driver and most of these ICT solutions and services are also applicable to public transport commuters, but an additional function for such commuters could be some kind of ‘emergency button’ on mobile phones to increase their sense of security in travel.Home office solutions are a way of avoiding the frustrations of commuting altogether. While working from home is regarded by some with ambivalence and is impossible for many, there are ways of refining these solutions.
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| 7. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Lådcyklar och bilfria vardagsliv
- 2014
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- För att skapa en miljömässigt hållbar stad behöver människorna i den ha anledning och möjlighet att anpassa sina vardagliga vanor i linje med stadens hållbara utveckling. I denna rapport behandlas vanor i form av vardagliga resor och transporter, t ex inköp av dagligvaror. Mer specifikt har undersökts hur tillgång till ett lådcykelsystem skulle kunna bidra till möjligheter att leva bilfria liv. Studien ingick som del av det större projektet Innovativ Parkering för klimatsmarta städer. De boende i en bostadsrättsförening i Bagarmossen, en av Stockholms södra förorter, fick tillgång till en lådcykelpool, d v s tre så kallade lådcyklar (lastcyklar med tre hjul och stor låda) som de fick boka och använda som de ville april-november 2013. Vi frågade oss på vilket sätt tillgången till lådcykelpoolen påverkade de boendes rese- och transportvanor i vardagen.Den kvantitativa delen av studien visade att nästan 20 % av hushållen bokade cyklarna en eller fler gånger och 5 % av hushållen använde cyklarna 10 gånger eller fler under försökets period. Gemensamt för de som använt cyklarna flitigt har, enligt de kvalitativa intervjuerna, varit en vilja att leva ett bilfritt vardagsliv samt att man hade flera olika slags transportbehov. Lådcyklarna har använts till utflykter och ärenden, det vill säga både nöjes- och nyttoresor.Bland förutsättningarna för lådcykelförsökets framgång fann vi en positiv inställning till lådcykelpoolen i föreningen – även bland medlemmar som inte själva använde lådcyklarna. Vi fann också goda fysiska förutsättningar för cykling i Bagarmossen med omnejd samt att föreningen valt att bygga vidare på redan existerande praktiker vad gäller bokningsförfarande. Därutöver resonerar vi kring att lådcykelförsöket kunde varit än mer lyckosamt om även ansvarsfördelningen för cykelunderhållet samt informationsspridning och instruktion byggt vidare på föreningens redan inarbetade praktiker med särskilda arbetsgrupper. Kopplat till detta visade sig också viktiga frågor vara en noggrann och konsekvent introduktion av lådcyklarna samt att lådcyklarna står på ett synligt ställe för de presumtiva användarna.Lådcykelanvändning kanske inte är för alla boende och ej heller i alla situationer, men vi tror att om ovan nämnda lärdomar beaktas så är chanserna att en mobilitetstjänst som en lådcykelpool, når en optimal användningsgrad.
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| 8. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, et al.
(författare)
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Meetings, practice and beyond : Environmental sustainability in meeting practices at work
- 2013
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Ingår i: Nachhaltigkeit in der Wirtschaftskommunikation. - Wiesbaden : Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden. - 9783658034511 - 9783658034528 ; , s. 159-190
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The study shows how the employees at a large transnational telecom company understand and accommodate the implemented travel and meeting policies that regulate business communication. This involves looking at employee decisions on when, how and why to hold meetings. The subsequent understandings of meetings and their practice is formed through negotiation and the formation of a ‘social matrix of workplace communication (meetings)’(Bateson & Reusch 2009). This social matrix and its contexts are analysed from the perspective of environmental sustainability of office work practice. The basis for this is the recent implementation of company-wide restrictions on travel aiming to encourage the use of mediated meetings instead of travel for face-to-face meetings. Some issues that emerge are shared meanings of meetings, more specifically the perceived importance of the physical meeting in a workplace where telephone meetings were the norm. This shows that even if the technological possibilities for mediated meetings and by extension a more flexible work practice exist, they are not regarded as default but seen as complementary to conventional work practices. The need to find a balance in between mediated and physical meetings comes across as a recurring theme in both interviews and policy documents. As a result the ongoing negotiation of which meetings are deemed necessary to be held in person and thereby requiring travel, is embedded within TeliaSonera employees' notions that face-to-face meetings are better and more efficient than mediated meetings. Subsequently the collective view that mediated meetings are not as successful as face-to-face meetings becomes a central to the character of workplace communication. This negotiation is carried out on an individual level as well as on a more organisational level. When carried out on an organisational level these negotiations occur in policy documents which can sometimes contradict employee perspectives and are equally subject to contextual factors (cf. Kogg 2002). Other related issues present in the empirical data are the blurring of the divide between work and home in relation to the changes in work practices and information and communication technology (ICT).
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| 9. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, 1978-
(författare)
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Practice makes perfect? : Sustainable practices with ICT and daily travel
- 2015
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The thesis shows how practice theory can be applied in different ways when exploring how daily life can be supported to become more environmentally sustainable. Ultimately the thesis aims to contribute to new knowledge on how to design policies and interventions that aim at facilitating environmentally sustainable practices. This thesis argues that practice theory is useful in the field of sustainability research since it offers as point of departure a perspective on human everyday life which decentres focus from individual behaviour and instead looks at how social practices are constructed by integrating and combining material, bodily and mental elements.The thesis discusses the following questions: i) How can the role of ICT in everyday life be conceptualized from a practice perspective?, ii) How can practice theory be used in order to describe and assess second order environmental effects? and iii) What are the key considerations from a practice perspective when designing social/physical interventions for sustainable mobility?The papers in this thesis all use practice theory as point of departure but with different outcomes. Practice theory is thus used conceptually, methodologically and analytically. The main conclusions of the thesis are: Changes in practices due to ICT usage will inevitably have environmental impacts, both negative and positive, and for policy-makers it is imperative to take this into consideration when planning for the future and actively support and facilitate sustainable social practices. Looking at changes in practices due to new ICT usage can be one way to include second order effects in environmental assessments, in this way contributing to a discussion of potential environmental impacts from implementing a new product, application or service.Interventions, such as a cargo bike pool or restrictive work travel policies, have the potential to change existing practices. However, the potential of these changes, depend on a variety of different factors which are more or less difficult to influence for the individual practitioner such as work location, time schedules, availability of transportation means and modes. Further, it is difficult to foresee exactly how such changes will look and if they sustain in the long run. Finally, it is not necessarily so that an intervention will have the desired outcome that was intended, the outcome might be something else, consequently this means that interventions need to be analysed and assessed from other perspectives, one being a practice perspective.
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| 10. |
- Börjesson Rivera, Miriam, 1978-
(författare)
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What is a sustainable everyday life? : Exploring and assessing the sustainability of everyday travel, sharing and ICT.
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In a world where the general trend is unsustainable consumption patterns, can sustainable everyday life be enabled? This thesis sought to expand the knowledge base for policies and measures for sustainability, based on the assumption that consumption can be viewed as the outcome of practices in which people engage in their day-to-day life. The thesis addressed the overall aim by examining the following questions: How can information and communication technology (ICT) practices contribute to sustainable everyday practices? How can sharing practices, ICT-based and other, contribute to sustainable everyday practices? and How can travel practices, ICT-based and other, contribute to sustainable everyday practices?Empirical and conceptual studies revealed that ICT has become a fundamental and integral part of everyday practices and that digitalisation is a tangible material companion with implications for sustainability. ICT changes practices in ways that can be both positive and negative from a sustainability perspective. These second-order effects need to be addressed early when developing ICT solutions/services.ICT has also contributed to development of the sharing economy, by making sharing easier and scalable. However, although some sharing practices can contribute to overall sustainability, others could display a high potential and risk, simultaneously. It is therefore important to identify and mitigate negative effects and exploit the full potential of sustainable sharing activities from a policy perspective.Everyday travel is the outcome of people’s social practices. Travel practices are therefore ultimately interlocked with other practices and spatially and temporally structured. It can thus be quite difficult for city dwellers, although not impossible, to fit in new ways of carrying out everyday city travel rather than existing travel practices. New travel practices should be viewed as complementary if there are no other enabling factors at play, such as convenience, pricing, policies and/or infrastructural changes. If some form of policy and/or infrastructural change is introduced, it is possible to change travel patterns and ultimately reduce travel. Here too, ICT could enable changes in travel practices, e.g. through mediated meetings or vehicle sharing. However, for sustainable everyday travel to become widespread, urban planning issues are important. Policy documents and environmental targets can be used proactively to legitimise new policies that enable more sustainable travel practices.This thesis shows that everyday practices, in a relatively affluent European urban context, contribute greatly to environmental impacts. Hence, how everyday practices are structured, or could be re-structured, is critical for sustainable development. Practices shape, and are shaped, by their socio-material context. This requires an overall, holistic approach, as offered by practice theory and actor-network theory. A holistic approach is crucial from a sustainability policy perspective, as it enables measures that target some, or all, of the different elements (material, meaning, skills) that constitute practice. It may also be crucial for policies addressing temporal and spatial aspects that structure practices, e.g. societal schedules and people’s homes in relation to their workplace. This presents an opportunity that policymakers could further explore and exploit.
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