| 1. |
- Eriksson, Linnea, et al.
(författare)
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Local organization for promoting energy efficiency-reform of local energy advice service in Sweden
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energy Efficiency. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1570-646X .- 1570-6478. ; 14:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Homeowners are identified as a group in society that could change their energy behaviour towards greater energy efficiency and use of non-fossil fuels. External local energy advisors, who provide knowledge, motivation and service, can influence their decisions and thereby increase energy efficiency and dissemination of non-fossil fuels. In Sweden, the energy advice system has recently been reformed and this paper investigates this reform and analyses its early effects. The aim is to analyse how energy advisors manage the reform and how they work as middle actors to increase energy efficiency and non-fossil fuel use among homeowners. We use the theoretical framework of middle actors in the middle-out perspective together with the theory of institutional logics to analyse the case of the energy advisor reform. This qualitative analysis contributes to the discussion of energy advisors by focusing on the relevance of organizational structures and logics for their possibilities to influence homeowners' energy practices. The reform has introduced a governance and New Public Management logic that runs parallel with the former energy advice logic, guiding the advisors' work practice. The results show that the reform potentially has increased the energy advisors' ability to act as middle actors. However, there are organizational practices following the reform, which greatly constrain the advisors' abilities as middle actors. One conclusion is that the advisors are in need of more guidance from the Energy Agency to be able to perform more successful work.
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| 2. |
- Govindarajan, Venkatesh, 1972-, et al.
(författare)
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Surveys as Means of Understanding User-behaviour with Respect to Energy Usage in Households, Prior to Decision-making to Promote Sustainability
- 2020
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Ingår i: Problemy Ekorozwoju. - : POLITECHNIKA LUBELSKA. - 1895-6912 .- 2080-1971. ; 15:1, s. 119-134
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Households account for varying shares of total energy usage in countries, depending on the degree of industrialization. In order to design effective policy instruments and set appropriate levels for subsidies, knowing the attitudes and perceptions of users with respect to energy usage and energy saving is always the first step. In this article, the authors have first presented a comparative analysis and critique of selected recently-published surveys (2018) related to energy use in households, from around the world, before applying the sustainability-thinking paradigm to their own regional survey of close to 300 single-family households (detached houses and row houses) carried out in Karlstad (south-central Sweden), to obtain insights into user attitudes and preferences-categorised into the three dimensions of sustainability-when it comes to energy usage or decision-making with regard to retrofits or new energy-using / energy-saving installations in households. Each of the dimensions is characterised by three criteria which respondents have rated on a Likert's scale of 0 to 4 (not important to very important). The findings from this survey will open up a new way of thinking about the heterogeniety of energy users (which needs to be respected), for decision-makers and energy-advisers, who could subsquently strengthen their interaction and communication with them.
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| 3. |
- Kjeang, Are, 1952-, et al.
(författare)
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Energy consulting services in the information age - literature review
- 2017
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Ingår i: Energy, Sustainability and Society. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2192-0567. ; 7:1
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The institution of energy consulting services is one of the several government instruments for improving the efficiency of energy usage in many European countries. Various forms of advice on energy issues are offered to households. In Sweden, there has been a drop in the number of households who avail of this service, even though it is offered independently, free of charge and easily accessible. Instead, Swedes have been increasingly seeking information on the Internet (websites, blogs and social media), which can be seen as both a challenge and an opportunity for the energy consulting service offered by Swedish municipalities. The aim of the literature study is to present an overview of current research in the area of energy consulting targeting households. This to identify central themes in the research front, identify knowledge gaps and discuss which challenges previous research emphasise for energy consulting services targeting households. The results show that research indicates that a measurement–feedback–communication strategy for households is necessary if one wishes to effect a change in consumer behaviour. Today, consumers expect more individualised information than before. Here, the three dimensions of sustainable development can be useful. Energy consulting is also better appreciated if it occurs in situ—at the customer’s home. How it can and should be developed in an increasingly digitalised world is a topic we think is vital for future research. Also, with sustainable development becoming increasingly important in this century, an interdisciplinary approach to energy consulting is strongly recommended by the authors of this paper.
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| 4. |
- Kjeang, Are, 1952-
(författare)
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Goda råd är inte dyra! : Om personlig energirådgivning i ett alltmer digitaliserat samhälle
- 2018
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- ”Nu är goda råd dyra”, heter det sedan gammalt i en svensk krissituation. I denna licentiatavhandling, vars rubrik kopplar till talesättet, behandlas svensk energirådgivnings utveckling och framtid. Forskning visar att i ett alltmer digitaliserat samhälle behöver energirådgivningen utvecklas för att bättre nå målgrupperna - hushåll, småföretag och organisationer. Digitala tjänster ger många möjligheter, men den viktiga personliga kontakten med energirådgivaren går inte att ersätta fullt ut. Med hjälp av fokusgrupper, intervjuer och samtal med energirådgivare, villaägare och enskilda experter har kunnat konstateras att den personligt genomförda rådgivningstjänsten är efterfrågad, angelägen och framgångsrik när byte av värmesystem, större ombyggnationer eller nybyggnationer är aktuellt. Att pröva idéer och lösningar, helst i hemmamiljön inför en ombyggnad, är uppskattad rådgivning. I samtalet, där inte enbart tekniska detaljer och lönsamhet diskuteras, kan alla i hushållet engageras. Energirådgivningen kan bli mer framgångsrik, men då krävs ett större kommunalt engagemang och en tydligare samverkan med andra statliga styrmedel. Hållbara råd kan alla få i Sverige idag och de goda råden är gratis! Med hjälp av dessa kan kanske kriser undvikas…
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| 5. |
- Kjeang, Are, 1952-
(författare)
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Good advice need not be expensive : On personalised energy advising in an increasingly digitised society
- 2019
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Rapport (refereegranskat)abstract
- ”Now good advice is beyond all price”, as Swedes say in a crisis. In this report, whose headline links to the saying, the development and future of Swedish energy advising function are treated. Research shows that in an increasingly digitized society, energy advice needs to be developed to better reach the target groups - households, small businesses and organizations.Digital services offer many opportunities, but the important personal contact with the energy adviser cannot be fully replaced. With the help of focus groups, interviews and conversations with energy advisors, homeowners and individual experts, it has been found that the personally performed advisory service is in demand, urgent and successful when changing the heating system and when major reconstruction or new construction is relevant. Trying ideas and solutions, preferably in the home environment before a rebuilding, is appreciated advice. In the conversation, where not only technical details and profitability are discussed, everyone in the household can be engaged. The energy advice service can be more successful, but then a greater municipal commitment and a clearer interaction with other government instruments is required. Sustainable advice can all get in Sweden today and the good advice is free! With the help of these, crises may be avoided…Are Kjeang is senior lecturer in Environmental and Energy Systems at Karlstad University. He is a specialist in energy efficiency in buildings and has extensive experience from working as an energy adviser in a Swedish municipality. This report is a translated and slightly processed version of his licentiate thesis Goda råd är inte dyra! Om personlig energirådgivning i ett alltmer digitaliserat samhälle (2018).
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| 6. |
- Kjeang, Are, 1952-, et al.
(författare)
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Local energy advising in Sweden : Historical development and lessons for future policy-making
- 2017
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Ingår i: Sustainability (Switzerland). - Basel : MDPI AG. - 2071-1050. ; 9:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In Sweden, energy-consulting services, here referred to as local energy advising (LEA), have traditionally contributed to improving household energy efficiency. The aim of this article is to analyze the development of this service from the 1970s, when the consultancy came into being, to the present day, through a review of documents and published literature. The analysis enables the understanding of the evolution of local energy advising as a policy instrument, and provides valuable insights for the future. Local energy advising has often been subsidized by the Swedish government and used as a state policy measure rather than a municipal one. As a policy measure, the function of the service has changed over time. In the early period, the oil crisis was a fact and the local advisers were used to inform households. In the 1980s, however, the task of energy-advising was taken over by the energy companies in the spirit of market liberalization. In the 1990s, Sweden became a member of the European Union, and the emphasis was put on general information campaigns. Recently, the development of decentralized energy systems (including micro-energy systems) has necessitated targeting individuals with information. One important lesson to learn from the historical development of LEA is the imperativeness of providing energy advising at the local rather than the state level for better efficiency.
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| 7. |
- Najar, Karim, et al.
(författare)
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Integrating novel solar technology into urban and rural spaces
- 2023
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Ingår i: 2023: Proceedings of the International Conference “Sustainable Built Environment and Urban Transition”. - : Linnaeus University Press.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The driving factor for solar energy today is the need to combat global warming and support the electrification now underway in Swedish society. Solar energy systems (heat and electricity) are expanding rapidly. However, space requirements and low efficiencies of conversion are hurdles to be overcome.The Nyroj system is a novel idea for tracking the solar energy efficiently into a Concentrating Photovoltaic System (CPV) for electricity production. The system consists of transparent tubes (solar generators), composed of large, vertically suspended units of “integrated concentrator solar modules" (referred to as lenses in the article). With a novel and simple mechanism, the system is able to pivot these lenses to track the movement of the sun across the sky, focusing its rays on high-efficiency solar cells. Besides vertical constructions on the ground, it is also possible to integrate the system into facades and for street lighting.Coastal areas and islands in the south of Sweden are examples of locations suitable for pilot installations, which will enable one to monitor and study the role played by these systems in harnessing solar energy, along with other sustainability criteria like social acceptability and economic feasibility. This system will play a part in the ‘Energigemenskap’ (energy community) – a concept which is being promoted in the country by avid supporters of green energy and the efficient use of the same.
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