1. |
- Adams, Sophie, et al.
(författare)
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Social license to automate: A critical review of emerging approaches to electricity demand management
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 80:October, s. 102210-12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Electricity demand-side management (DSM) programs are becoming increasingly important to energy system managers in advanced industrialized countries, especially those with high renewable energy penetration. As energy user participation is paramount for their success but has proven to be difficult to obtain, we explore the usefulness of the ‘social license’ concept, originally developed in the mining sector, to refer to the process of creating acceptance in DSM programs aimed at managing or controlling household energy resources such EVs, batteries, and heating and cooling devices. We argue that analyzing the attainment or lack of ‘social license’ may be useful to energy policy-makers and researchers for understanding public concerns with not only supply-side energy resources, but also DSM. We do so by (1) drawing attention to potential frictions between demands for flexibility on the one hand and social practices and habits on the other; (2) attending to the ways that users’ engagement in DSM programs is influenced by their sense of control and agency, and their trust in program providers; and (3) exploring the ways that users may understand their stake in the energy system and may participate in programs as collectives rather than simply as individuals. We argue that a ‘social license to automate’ could not only describe a set of tools to manage participation in DSM projects, but rather assess the ways users effectively feel part of new energy systems designed to serve them.
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2. |
- Akimaya, Muhammad, et al.
(författare)
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Political power, economic trade-offs, and game theory in Indonesian gasoline subsidy reform
- 2022
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 92
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Gasoline subsidies distort the gasoline market resulting in inefficiencies and a costly burden in government budget. In Indonesia, they have taken up to 15Â % of the government expenditures that arguably could be better spent elsewhere. Governments are aware of these costs, yet face difficulties in removing the policy. Governments would like to release the subsidy fund for other programs while still maintaining political power. Simultaneously, a reform will reduce the purchasing of the population and thus, it is commonly met with strong public resistance. The general population can influence the government’s decision to carry out a reform by exerting pressure that may affect the country’s political stability. There is a vast economics literature analysing the economic impact from a subsidy reform. Meanwhile, the government’s hesitancy is analysed in the political science literature. We combined these two fields by developing a quantitative game theory model to show the interaction between the government and the general population. The model is based on Indonesian data but provides a framework that can be applied elsewhere. Different policy removal schemes are simulated including completely or partially phasing-out the subsidy with and without compensation. An important take-away from our analysis is that it provides a framework showing governments what they have to quantify in order to make an informed policy decision. Another important implication is that the success of the policy reform is highly dependent on the selectorates trust to the government. It strongly supports the political science recommendations of building trust through transparency and inclusion.
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3. |
- Anshelm, Jonas, 1960-, et al.
(författare)
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Battling Promethean dreams and Trojan horses : Revealing the critical discourses of geoengineering
- 2014
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 2, s. 135-144
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Geoengineering could counteract climate change by either altering the earth's global energy balance by reflecting sunlight or removing CO2 from the atmosphere. Geoengineering evokes various ethical and political challenges that are increasingly reflected in public debate and deliberation. Via a qualitative textual analysis of 1500 articles, we investigate discursive claims critical of geoengineering, considering what subjects are the most controversial, and what worldviews, values, and problematizations are shared by the actors subscribing to this discourse. We argue that the controversy about geoengineering differs, discursively, from other techno-political conflicts. Geoengineering proponents are described as reluctantly favouring research and deployment and displaying an unusual self-reflexivity, as they are well aware of and seriously consider all the technology's risks. Our analysis demonstrates that the discourse critical of geoengineering differs from and questions the dominant pro-geoengineering discourse in several profound ways with lasting implications for energy scholarship and analysis.
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4. |
- Baard, Patrik, 1981-
(författare)
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Knowledge, participation, and the future : Epistemic quality in energy scenario construction
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 75
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Constructing energy scenarios is traditionally an endeavour driven by experts. I suggest that an outcome of relying solely on expertise is incompleteness. Moreover, expertise, while being a necessary condition, is not a sufficient condition for epistemic quality and normative legitimacy of energy scenarios given the scope of transitions that energy scenarios entail, which includes substantial societal repercussions. Four reasons will be provided for wide participation when constructing energy scenarios. First, there are several forecasting shortcomings of top-down approaches. Second, to rely solely on expertise provides incomplete conceptualizations of energy and central concepts such as ‘smartness’, in addition to neglecting normative views. Third, increased epistemic quality is an outcome of wide participation. A fourth reason is derived from the argument of inductive risks, stating that thresholds of evidence should reflect the potential outcomes if erroneously corroborating or rejecting a hypothesis. As energy scenarios provide input to decision-making having potentially large societal impact, they ought to be both normatively legitimate as well as of sufficient epistemic quality, components provided by wide participation.
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5. |
- Backman, Fredrik
(författare)
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Local knowledge creation with the use of industrial energy efficiency networks (IEENs) : A Swedish case study
- 2018
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 42, s. 147-154
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents a case study of a Swedish municipality, focusing on how local industry and local authorities, collaborating through industrial energy efficiency networks (IEENs), can increase the amount of realized energy efficient measures. The Swedish case discussed here has similarities to a German/Swiss organizational model with the purpose of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in their implementation of energy efficient measures. Both models have a strong focus on knowledge creation through practice rather than on information sharing. The background, design, benefits, and drawbacks of the Swedish case model are discussed here through document studies and interviews with participants in the project. The Swedish model implies that by supporting knowledge creation in SMEs through a practice dimension, the amount of realized energy efficient measures can be increased. This model should therefore be recognized as an effective policy instrument for municipalities that are interested in supporting local industry. Another conclusion is that information sharing in networks must be complemented by the creation of situated local knowledge through practices. Finally, value, situated practical experience, trust, knowledge creation, and informal meetings are important factors that enabled the network to fully support SMEs in implementing energy efficient measures.
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6. |
- Baker, Erin, et al.
(författare)
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Who is marginalized in energy justice? Amplifying community leader perspectives of energy transitions in Ghana
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 73
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is a divide in energy access studies, between technologically-focused modeling papers in engineering and economics, and energy justice frameworks and principles grounded in social sciences. Quantitative computational models are necessary when analyzing energy, and more specifically electricity, systems, as they are technologically-complex systems that can diverge from intuitive patterns. To assure energy justice, these models must be reflective of, and informative to, a wide range of stakeholders, including households and communities alongside utilities, governments, and others. Yet, moving from a qualitative understanding of preferences to quantitative modeling is challenging. In this perspective piece, we pilot the use of the value-focused thinking framework to inform stakeholder engagement. The result is a strategic objective hierarchy that highlights the tradeoffs and the social, economic and technological factors that need to be measured in models. We apply the process in Ghana, using a survey, stakeholder workshops, and follow-up interviews to uncover key tradeoffs and stakeholder-derived objectives. We discuss three key areas that have been rarely, if ever, well-represented in energy models: (1) the relationship between the dynamics of electricity end-use and the technology and economic structure of the system; (2) explicit tradeoffs between electricity access, cost, and reliability as defined by stakeholders; and (3) the definition of new objectives, such as minimizing hazards related to theft. We conclude that this model of engagement provides an opportunity to tie together rigorous qualitative analysis and stakeholder engagement with crucial quantitative models of the electricity system.
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7. |
- Balmaceda, Margarita, et al.
(författare)
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Energy materiality : A conceptual review of multi-disciplinary approaches
- 2019
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 56
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This jointly authored essay reviews recent scholarship in the social sciences, broadly understood, that focuses on the materiality of energy. Although this work is extraordinarily diverse in its disciplinary and interdisciplinary influences and its theoretical and methodological commitments, we discern four areas of convergence and divergence that we term the locations, uses, relationalities, and analytical roles of energy materiality. We trace these convergences and divergences through five recent scholarly conversations: materiality as a constraint on actors' behavior; historical energy systems; mobility, space and scale; discourse and power via energy materialities; and energy becoming material.
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8. |
- Balmaceda, Margarita, et al.
(författare)
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Rethinking energy materialities in the shadow of Russia's war on Ukraine
- 2024
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 117
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article revisits the topic of energy materiality against the backdrop of Russia's war on Ukraine. It examines how views on energy materiality have had to change considering the war; how historical, political science/IR, anthropological, and geographical approaches to war and energy systems may provide insights into the continuities and discontinuities in energy materialities facing Europe and the rest of the world; and what research agendas in this space could look like moving forward. A war that was unexpected by many has led to many unexpected outcomes, foremost a remarkable degree of adaptability in those places dependent on the energy supply and value chains impacted by the conflict. Nevertheless, from issues ranging from climate change to fertilizers—therefore, truly global in scope—this war has wide-ranging implications for energy materiality, and how social scientists may seek to understand it.
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9. |
- Bjärstig, Therese, Docent, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Is large-scale wind power a problem, solution, or victim? A frame analysis of the debate in Swedish media
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 83
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Media content analysis was used with the aim of developing an understanding of how the debate on large-scale wind power has played out over time in Sweden, especially in relation to the enactment of national interest areas for wind power. Covering the period 1999 to 2019 and using NVivo for coding and analysis, we reviewed a total of 788 articles in both national and regional daily newspapers. To identify which actors are present in media and how they frame large-scale wind power, we conducted a frame analysis by applying three theoretical elements developed by previous media studies. The first is a diagnostic element used to pinpoint the cause to a problem, the second a prognostic element used to pinpoint the solution to a problem, and the third a motivating element used to identify the person(s) or object(s) suffering from the problem, that is, victim. Our results emphasize that wind power in recent years has been framed as a solution more often than a cause to a problem. One prevailing framing is the localization of large-scale wind power per se and conflicts with other land-uses and national interests. We also identify a tension between international and national policy objectives and local implementation of large-scale wind power. Governmental agencies are the most common framers over time, together with individuals (e.g. locals and second home owners) and wind entrepreneurs. Importantly, whereas politicians and wind entrepreneurs most often frame wind power as a solution, individuals frame it as a cause to a problem.
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10. |
- Björner Brauer, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
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Re-configuring practices in times of energy crisis : A case study of Swedish households
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier Ltd. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 114, s. 103578-103578
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During the autumn, winter and early spring of 2022/2023, Europe faced rapidly increasing energy prices and threats of power cuts. The situation was consequently labelled an “energy crisis”, and one sector that was severely affected was households. In response to the situation, European households made efforts to reduce and time-shift their energy use to mitigate the effects of the crisis. Considering that domestic energy practices are often difficult to change, particularly in the long term, we find this effect of the energy crisis on households important to understand more deeply. In this paper, we use social practice theory to investigate how Swedish households responded to the crisis and what changes they made in terms of re-configurations of their practices. The aim was to contribute knowledge on how households adapt to a changing energy system with volatile prices, limitations in electric power, and threats of energy crisis. We conducted two rounds of semi-structured interviews with 9 households in single-family houses in the middle and south of Sweden during and after the crisis, in total 18 interviews, to examine what re-configurations of practices emerged and which persisted over time. The results show that significant changes were apparent in primarily the practice domains of heating and hygiene. While some of these changes were temporary, other re-configurations of energy practices persisted beyond the months of crisis and high prices, indicating that meanings of frugality and sufficiency were strengthened. Our results demonstrate that households were reminded of certain electricity use that is otherwise typically backgrounded in homes and that the energy crisis stimulated re-configuration and re-examination of norms as well as reflection on electricity use in general. Finally, we discuss the effects of the energy crisis on household practices in comparison with other crises and disruptions, and point to the importance of communicating clearly with households about the societal effects of their efforts, in order to manage the legacy of this crisis for similar future crisis situations.
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11. |
- Boonstra, Wiebren Johannes, Dr. 1976-, et al.
(författare)
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Theorising resistance in times of fossil fuels : Ecological grief, righteous anger and interaction rituals in Sweden's energy regime shift
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 116
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The emerging shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy engages a broad spectrum of society. Through protests, social media campaigns and civil unrest, different groups seek to impact the speed, direction and distributional effects of this transformation. In this paper, we develop a conceptualisation of how such resistance is socially mobilised. We ask how people come to resort to open resistance in the context of energy regime dynamics. The growing literature on the topic highlights that declining material and social capital are not enough to understand resistance in times of fossil fuels. We suggest in this study that attention to a wider spectrum of emotions is crucial for understanding the political and ethical contestations through which changes in energy provision materialize. We draw upon sociological theory, in particular the notion of interaction rituals, to understand the social and affective process of resistance. The concept of interaction rituals captures the movement from feeling aggrieved to mobilisation of resistance through attention to the sharing and transformation of emotions. We apply our theorisation in two Swedish examples of contemporary resistance - the Forest Rebellion and the Petrol Protest - to illustrate the grievances that underpin these movements, and how interaction rituals mobilise and justify resistance. We end the paper with a discussion and comparison of the two examples, and the implications of our findings for (academic) knowledge about the role of resistance in relation to energy regimes.
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12. |
- Brauer, Hanna Björner, et al.
(författare)
-
Re-configuring practices in times of energy crisis – A case study of Swedish households
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier Ltd. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 114
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During the autumn, winter and early spring of 2022/2023, Europe faced rapidly increasing energy prices and threats of power cuts. The situation was consequently labelled an “energy crisis”, and one sector that was severely affected was households. In response to the situation, European households made efforts to reduce and time-shift their energy use to mitigate the effects of the crisis. Considering that domestic energy practices are often difficult to change, particularly in the long term, we find this effect of the energy crisis on households important to understand more deeply. In this paper, we use social practice theory to investigate how Swedish households responded to the crisis and what changes they made in terms of re-configurations of their practices. The aim was to contribute knowledge on how households adapt to a changing energy system with volatile prices, limitations in electric power, and threats of energy crisis. We conducted two rounds of semi-structured interviews with 9 households in single-family houses in the middle and south of Sweden during and after the crisis, in total 18 interviews, to examine what re-configurations of practices emerged and which persisted over time. The results show that significant changes were apparent in primarily the practice domains of heating and hygiene. While some of these changes were temporary, other re-configurations of energy practices persisted beyond the months of crisis and high prices, indicating that meanings of frugality and sufficiency were strengthened. Our results demonstrate that households were reminded of certain electricity use that is otherwise typically backgrounded in homes and that the energy crisis stimulated re-configuration and re-examination of norms as well as reflection on electricity use in general. Finally, we discuss the effects of the energy crisis on household practices in comparison with other crises and disruptions, and point to the importance of communicating clearly with households about the societal effects of their efforts, in order to manage the legacy of this crisis for similar future crisis situations.
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13. |
- Bravo, Giangiacomo, 1969-, et al.
(författare)
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Actions speak louder than words : Attitudes, behaviour, and partisan identity in a polarised environmental domain
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 90
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The relationship between environmental attitudes and behaviour is known to be weak, especially when these variables are measured as self-report items in surveys. In addition many environmental questions are highly polarised, making it even more problematic to use survey data to inform policy making. To better explore the attitude–behaviour gap in the context of environmental policies, along with its interaction with partisan identity, we ran an online experiment with 805 U.S. residents. Four key variables – environmental attitudes, self-reported environmental behaviour, observed environmental behaviour (in the form of carbon-offset credit purchase), and partisan identity – were measured, and their interactions in promoting pro-environmental behaviour were analysed. We found that (1) self-reported and real behaviour are almost uncorrelated and (2) partisan identity mainly predicted self-reported not actual environmental behaviour. These results suggest that policy-making needs to rely more on behavioural insight to test policies’ actual effects and to promote real improvement of the local and global environment.
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14. |
- Bridge, Gavin, et al.
(författare)
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Energy infrastructure and the fate of the nation: Introduction to special issue
- 2018
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 41, s. 1-11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this article we introduce a Special Issue of Energy Research and Social Science focused on energy infrastructure and the political economy of national development. Many countries are experiencing transformational growth in energy infrastructure, such as transmission and distribution systems; import, export and storage facilities; the development of domestic energy resources; and construction of new power generating stations based on wind, water, coal, gas and nuclear sources. Large-scale projects like these are frequently justified by appeals to grand narratives – promoting economic growth, securing energy supply, modernizing energy service provision, and transitioning to more environmentally sustainable energy systems - in which the fate of the nation is closely tied to infrastructural development. The papers in this collection present compelling empirical evidence of how claims for energy infrastructure’s national significance and/or necessity intersect with the (re)production of political and economic power. Drawing on case material from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe, they highlight the capacity of different energy technologies and infrastructural assemblages to shape political and economic outcomes beyond their role in storing, transporting or transforming energy. This Introduction to the Special Issue does three things. First, it characterises the scale and significance of the contemporary ‘infrastructural moment’, observing how, in many national contexts, energy policy-making remains centralised and divorced from public participation. Second, it critically differentiates existing literature on the political economy of energy infrastructure to identify five distinctive ways in which research understands the ‘political work’ infrastructure performs. Third, it introduces the papers in the Special Issue and organises them into four key themes. Overall, the Introduction affirms the importance for social science of understanding the economically and politically constitutive power of energy infrastructures. The critical reflexivity this requires is essential to moving towards energy infrastructures that are just, equitable and sustainable.
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15. |
- Broms, Loove, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Sensing energy : Forming stories through speculative design artefacts
- 2017
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 31, s. 194-204
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The artificial world is part of an on-going negotiation of meaning, manifesting in social practice. From a sustainability perspective it is thus important to critically examine what norms are imprinted into the artificial, as well as to imagine, materialize and suggest artefacts that could afford more sustainable stories and practices to form. The project Sensing Energy is an attempt to explore how design could contribute to a re-imagination of everyday life and society, as well as what imaginaries (artefacts and related stories) could come out of such an endeavour. A critical and speculative design programme comprising the three leitmotifs Natureculture, Microsizing modernity, and Focal things and practices, provided a frame and foundation for a series of design experiments. The resulting artefacts were presented at two different workshops in which participants were asked to form stories that integrated one or more of the design experiments into their everyday life. Based on the material from the workshops we can conclude that the design experiments worked well as parts of or catalysts for new stories of the everyday.
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16. |
- Brännlund, Anton, et al.
(författare)
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Jolts at the ballot box : Electricity prices and voting in Swedish manufacturing communities
- 2024
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 110
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This research examines the overlooked political implications of energy pricing on voting patterns in manufacturing communities, amidst increasing scholarly interest in the political ramifications of Western industrial decline. We focus specifically on the surge in electricity prices and their effect on electoral choices in manufacturing -dense regions in Sweden during the 2022 general elections. The rise in electricity costs holds particular significance given Europe's reliance on imported energy for competitive manufacturing, coupled with the existing constraints on energy supply. With energy prices being a direct threat to industries and influencing the competitiveness of manufacturing firms and job security, we argue that these factors could significantly influence voting behaviour in affected communities. Our findings show that areas with higher electricity costs witnessed a more robust performance by the incumbent Social Democratic Party, suggesting that economic insecurity may indeed spur greater demand for traditional left-wing policies, such as economic compensation.
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17. |
- Buhr, Katarina, et al.
(författare)
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Communication approaches for carbon capture and storage : Underlying assumptions of limited versus extensive public engagement
- 2014
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Ingår i: Energy Research and Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 3, s. 5-12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A pertinent issue in the literature on communication on emerging technologies such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) concerns the degree to which the public is actively involved in the communication process. While researchers have highlighted the pros and cons of limited versus extensive public engagement, the assumptions underlying various communication approaches have been largely neglected. Illuminating assumptions are important for scholarly understandings of what influences communication and for practitioner reflexive awareness in designing communication plans. This paper explores assumptions made about senders and receivers when involving the public to various degrees in CCS communication and how these assumptions relate to different communication objectives. We describe two contrasting communication approaches, the transmission and participatory approaches, relating them to CCS characteristics and research. We find that CCS communication may, deliberately or not, be based on different assumptions about the social framing of CCS concerning who should formulate the message, the public’s ability to understand complex science, the public’s interest in helping frame CCS, and whether public opinions should be taken into account. These assumptions also relate to different communication objectives – convincing the public or increasing dialogue – implying different communication fora, predictability, and input.
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18. |
- Carson, Dean B., et al.
(författare)
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Lessons from the Arctic past : The resource cycle, hydro energy development, and the human geography of Jokkmokk, Sweden
- 2016
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 16, s. 13-24
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent research has identified a series of human geography impacts of natural resource developments in sparsely populated areas like the Arctic. These impacts can be mapped to the 'resource cycle', and arise from periods of population growth and decline, changing patterns of human migration and mobility, changing patterns of settlement, and changes in the demographic 'balance' between males and females, young and old, Indigenous and non-Indigenous. This paper examines the applicability of the resource cycle model in the case of hydro energy development in the Jokkmokk municipality of Sweden. Using quantitative demographic data, media reports, and contemporary accounts of hydro development, the paper describes the human geography of Jokkmokk since the late 19th century. The paper concludes that changes in human geography in Jokkmokk mirror what has been observed in regions dependent on non-renewable resources, although it is difficult to distinguish many impacts from those that might have occurred under alternative development scenarios. The paper identifies a 'settlement cycle' with phases of integrated and separated habitation for populations specifically associated with the development. Settlement dynamics, and the impacts of hydro on Sami geography are areas for further research.
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19. |
- Castor, Jennifer, et al.
(författare)
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SDGs in action : A novel framework for assessing energy projects against the sustainable development goals
- 2020
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 68
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Energy projects in pursuit of Sustainable Development Goal 7, which addresses affordable and clean energy, can have numerous synergies and trade-offs with all other SDGs and their targets. However, the identification of such interlinkages is both complicated and scattered in literature. To overcome this gap, this research presents the development and application of the Sustainable Development Goals Impact Assessment Framework for Energy Projects (SDGs-IAE) for qualitative assessment of SDG target synergies and trade-offs within the context of a given energy project. Two diverse case studies ‒ the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the Hinkley Point C Nuclear Power Station (HPC) ‒ are utilized to test the framework. Each case study highlights important SDG target interactions drawn out by this process. The GERD analysis shows the many synergies that result from energy access expansion while also bringing up trade-offs related to transboundary water rights and community relocation. In the case of the HPC, long-term ecosystem impacts of uranium mining and trade-offs related to future climate resilience and energy affordability are identified. The final resulting framework and corresponding excel-based tool can inform a dialog among stakeholders about the key areas of improvement related to the project´s social, environmental and economic sustainability.
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20. |
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21. |
- Christley, Emily, et al.
(författare)
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Sustainable energy for slums? : Using the Sustainable Development Goals to guide energy access efforts in a Kenyan informal settlement
- 2021
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 79
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Urban and peri-urban communities across the Global South face considerable energy access challenges with over one billion people living without adequate access to basic services such as energy, water, and healthcare. Lack of access to modern energy services has cascading effects on the United Nations 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this article we address this issue, using the SDGs as a framework to evaluate how policies and plans for local energy access can be coordinated with all SDG Targets. With a case study in Kibera, Kenya, we analyse how local energy access could enable or inhibit all local SDG Targets. Based on this knowledge, we propose a set of actions to achieve full modern energy access without compromising other local Sustainable Development Goals. We propose a new taxonomy to evaluate how actions affect the interlinkages between local energy access and the achievement of the SDGs. We find that the SDGs, applied as a framework to direct national policies and strategic projects, offer a holistic outlook, helping to unpack discrete thinking and support an integrated sustainable future for all.
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22. |
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23. |
- Darmani, Anna, 1985-, et al.
(författare)
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Do the strategic decisions of multinational energy companies differ in divergent market contexts? : An exploratory study
- 2016
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 11, s. 9-18
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In the European energy industry, different countries’ national institutional frameworks have evolved divergently in response to increasing concerns about environmental issues. This paper explores the influence of these divergent national institutional frameworks on the strategic behavior of multinational company (MNC) subsidiaries. Differences in MNC subsidiaries’ strategic decisions in different countries, regardless of common capabilities and strategies, illustrate the importance of this influence. The paper focuses on the strategic decisions that determine which energy technology MNCs choose to acquire or invest in. MNCs are the predominant force in the European energy industry, and our understanding of their strategic decisions regarding choice of technology is an essential step in achieving a low-carbon energy industry. Our analysis is based on a longitudinal case study of Vattenfall, a Swedish multinational energy company. Findings confirm that even in the energy industry—a capital-intensive, national, and institution-based industry—MNCs follow their core global strategy to such an extent that it may prevail over local institutional considerations. Nevertheless, as European energy markets become deregulated and renewable energy matures, local institutions are likely to play a more dominant role, and MNCs will increasingly need to comply with local institutions’ guidelines. The paper offers recommendations for policymakers and several managerial implications.
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24. |
- Davidovic, Dragana
(författare)
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Does corruption shape attitudes towards carbon taxes? Experimental evidence from Mexico and Sweden
- 2024
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Ingår i: ENERGY RESEARCH & SOCIAL SCIENCE. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 112
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Economists and policy experts have long argued for the implementation of carbon taxes as the most cost-efficient way to decrease carbon emissions and enhance climate change mitigation. Public support for such taxes is generally lacking, however, compromising their political feasibility. While a range of determinants of climate policy attitudes have been studied, the role of institutional context, and specifically corruption in explaining public aversion towards climate taxes has been largely unexplored. This paper investigates the links between corruption perceptions, trust, and attitudes towards climate taxes in a survey experiment fielded in Sweden and Mexico. Using randomized vignettes to stimulate high -corrupt and low -corrupt perceptions among about 3000 respondents from each country, the analyses evaluate the effect of corruption on trust and attitudes towards climate taxes and explore potential individual -level mechanisms at play using post -treatment questions. The study shows that increased corruption perceptions generate negative attitudes towards climate taxes, even among those who hold pro -environmental value orientations and concerns and political value orientations in favor of state regulation. Mediation analyses suggest that decreased levels of political and institutional trust may explain this effect, but that negative policy -specific beliefs also may play a mediating role. The study contributes to an increased understanding of the negative effect of corruption on climate policy attitudes in diverse institutional settings and outlines avenues for future research.
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25. |
- Davidovic, Dragana, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring the cross-national variation in public support for climate policies in Europe: The role of quality of government and trust
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 70
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To reach ambitious climate change mitigation targets and steer actors toward more climate friendly behaviors, governments will have to implement climate policy measures. Imposing certain policy instruments may be challenging since gaining public support for climate policies may be difficult in some countries, especially given the low levels of political trust we see in Europe and elsewhere in the world today. We argue that contextual factors, specifically, institutional quality matters. Using data from the European Social Survey (2016), we explore whether cross-national variation in public support for climate policies is associated with levels of quality of government (QoG) and trust in political institutions and people in general, and if such associations vary across different types of climate policies, including taxes, subsidies, and bans. We find that QoG and generalized trust are positively linked to support for taxes, but not to support for subsidies and bans. Moreover, we find that political trust is more strongly linked to support for taxes than to support for subsidies and bans. These results hold using alternative model specifications.
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26. |
- Di Lucia, Lorenzo, et al.
(författare)
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Low-carbon district heating in Sweden – Examining a successful energy transition
- 2014
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6326 .- 2214-6296. ; 4, s. 10-20
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- District heating (DH) systems may contribute to reducing the use of fossil fuels for heating purposes since they enable the use of waste heat and facilitate the use of renewable energy sources. This paper focuses on the transformation of the Swedish DH systems with regard to energy supply in 1960–2011. Swedish DH production was completely dependent on oil until the late 1970s, while today it is dominated by biomass and other renewable energy sources. The objectives of this paper are to describe and explain the fuel transition in the context of the main events that have characterized the development of the Swedish DH sector. For this purpose, we employ theories and approaches grounded in the literature on systems of innovations, especially the Multi-Level Perspective. The study shows that the transition involved a series of steps. Initiated by the oil crises in the 1970s the oil-based regime collapsed rapidly, while the growth of the biomass-based regime was a steered process governed by actors and supported only by external events. The lessons learned from the transition towards low-carbon and more sustainable DH systems in Sweden could be useful in the challenging task of steering future energy transitions in other countries and sectors.
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27. |
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28. |
- Dubouis, Ghislain, et al.
(författare)
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It starts at home? Climate policies targeting household consumption and behavioral decisions are key to low-carbon futures
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 52, s. 144-158
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Through their consumption behavior, households are responsible for 72% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, they are key actors in reaching the 1.5°C goal under the Paris Agreement. However, the possible contribution and position of households in climate policies is neither well understood, nor do households receive sufficiently high priority in current climate policy strategies. This paper investigates how behavioral change can achieve a substantial reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in European high-income countries. It uses theoretical thinking and some core results from the HOPE research project, which investigated household preferences for reducing emissions in four European cities in France, Germany, Norway and Sweden. The paper makes five major points: First, car and plane mobility, meat and dairy consumption, as well as heating are the most dominant components of household footprints. Second, household living situations (demographics, size of home) greatly influence the household potential to reduce their footprint, even more than country or city location. Third, household decisions can be sequential and temporally dynamic, shifting through different phases such as childhood, adulthood, and illness. Fourth, short term voluntary efforts will not be sufficient by themselves to achieve the drastic reductions needed to achieve the 1.5°C goal; instead, households need a regulatory framework supporting their behavioral changes. Fifth, there is a mismatch between the roles and responsibilities conveyed by current climate policies and household perceptions of responsibility. We then conclude with further recommendations for research and policy.
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29. |
- Edberg, Karin, et al.
(författare)
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Phasing out or phasing in : Framing the role of nuclear power in the Swedish energy transition
- 2016
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 13, s. 170-179
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article examines how members of the Swedish Parliament framed nuclear energy in the 2010 debate on the future of nuclear power in Sweden in order to understand how politicians construct and contextualize their views on the role of nuclear energy in energy transitions. Our findings suggest that four themes could be identified in the debate and that these were formative for politicians in framing nuclear energy. Even though all political actors anticipate an energy transition towards a more sustainable system, different paths to advancing in this process were brought up in the debate, both with and without prolongation of the nuclear energy program. Our analysis suggests that framings of nuclear energy are closely related to the political ideologies of the parties in the Parliament because the two framings of nuclear energy correspond with the division of the Swedish Parliament into two political blocs. However, views on nuclear energy are not inherent to political ideologies but are constructed. This article thus integrates the politics of nuclear energy within the research on energy transitions.
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30. |
- Eidenskog, Maria
(författare)
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Working with models: Social and material relations entangled with energy efficiency modelling in Sweden
- 2017
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 34, s. 224-230
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Modelling the energy use of buildings during the planning process is a well-established practice within the construction industry today. This article studies how these models are handled in practice and the issues that arise around them. This is a case study that follows the planning process of a block of rental buildings in Sweden. With an Actor Network approach this article shows how the complexity of the energy model affects the relationships between the energy consultant and the professionals from the construction company. Since the construction company professionals do not understand the calculations behind the model, they have to trust the energy consultants expertise. Furthermore, the energy modelling practices create tensions when proposed architectural designs are at odds with the energy efficiency goals. Lastly, the article shows how the uncertainties connected to the models calculations provide an arena where personal feelings are allowed to be part of the process. From the perspective of the involved professionals, energy modelling is shown to entangle social and material relations in ways that have not previously been studied in relation to energy efficiency in the process of planning new buildings.
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31. |
- El Gohary, Fouad, et al.
(författare)
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Getting the signal : Do electricity users meet the preconditions for making informed decisions on demand response?
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 100
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Demand response refers to changes in power consumption by electricity users in response to certain conditions on the electricity market. Anticipated to play a major role in the energy transition, demand response is conventionally exercised through network tariffs, which serve as a medium for price signals intended to incentivize and guide electricity users on how to best behave. Considerable attention has been devoted to the unresolved question of whether users are willing to respond to these signals, a question premised on the implicit assumption of cognizant users making informed decisions. Less attention has been dedicated to evaluating the validity of this assumption, and the extent to which users actually internalize these signals prior to making any decision on how to respond. This study posits that prior to making an informed decision on how to act, an electricity user must first “qualify” through meeting a set of preconditions. These preconditions are captured by a proposed three-stage framework that involves i) receiving the price signal (being aware of the tariff), ii) processing the price signal (comprehending its features) and iii) assimilating the price signal (understanding how behavior influences costs). Evaluating this framework using a survey, the study finds that only 3.8–8.5 % of respondents clear all three stages. This minority is substantially more likely to contain older villa-residents, who are comparatively more concerned with their costs and read their bills more frequently. The findings of this study demonstrate that the “audience” of tariff-based price signals are a small fraction of what is commonly supposed, and that research and policy should shift from a dominant focus on the magnitude of these price signals, towards alternative or improved strategies for communication and engagement.
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32. |
- Envall, Fredrik, 1990-, et al.
(författare)
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Gridlocked: Sociomaterial configurations of sustainable energy transitions in Swedish solar energy communities
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 102
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Local generation of renewable energy in energy communities has long been around, but has recently experienced an upswing. This upswing is partly due to the EU Clean Energy Package (CEP), where energy communities are introduced juridically as formal actors. Within this policy package, various values are attributed to local energy communities, particularly emphasising broadened citizen participation. Also in academic contexts, energy communities are assigned an important role for a just energy transition. Considering this increasing importance and policy prevalence, it is relevant to explore what types of energy communities exist and are emerging in light of the CEP, and which values these correspond with. We do so by exploring how Swedish solar energy communities are configured and what values they foreground, through the analytical lens of problematizations. Exploring how different configurations entail particular problematizations elucidates how certain values are constructed as relevant, possibly to the detriment of other possible values, thus deepening our understanding of solar energy communities' potential contribution to a just energy transition. We discern a pattern in that particular values related to energy system optimisation are foregrounded, rather than other values such as democratisation, indicating the existence of a broader hegemony that shapes configurations of Swedish solar energy communities.
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33. |
- Ertelt, Sophie-Marie, 1993-
(författare)
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Beyond predict and provide : Embracing sufficiency synergies in road freight electrification across the European Union
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 111
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The challenge of aligning with the net-zero ambitions of the European Union necessitates a critical examination of the road freight transport sector, a pivotal contributor to global commerce and greenhouse gas emissions. Despite the sector's potential for electrification to mitigate emissions, the prevailing 'predict and provide' planning approach may inadvertently reduce this low-carbon transition to mere technological substitution, neglecting deeper intrinsic transport issues. This perspective critiques the 'predict and provide' approach and advocates for the adoption of 'sufficiency-oriented planning'. It presents a comprehensive, interconnected approach, challenging not only the technology in use but also the foundational principles of transport demand. Furthermore, it explores the broader implications of this multi-system transition for the energy sector. The perspective consequently underscores the necessity of a paradigm shift in planning for road freight transport electrification for the sector to genuinely contribute to sustainability objectives and not risk diminishing the transformative potential of this transition.
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34. |
- Farhangi, Mohsen, 1989-, et al.
(författare)
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More than wires and screens: Assumptions about agency of devices in smart energy projects
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : ELSEVIER. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 114
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Developing a low-carbon energy system requires far-reaching societal transformations, not least in energy-related practices and behaviour. Smart energy grids have recently gained attention among national governments as a potential solution for low-carbon energy transitions at the household level as they are assumed to empower energy consumers and make them an active part of a more balanced and sustainable energy system. The aim of this paper is to investigate the ways in which managers of such project interventions understand the sources of agency leading to a more sustainable energy use and whether these changes are rather driven by the design of devices or incentives, or by the broader socio-political context of user agency. These investigations are enriched by a comprehensive review of social science literature on smart energy grids. Interviews with technology and project developers of four smart energy grid projects in Sweden (READY, InteGrid, InterFlex, and FLEXICIENCY), and reviews of developer's reports and presentations were done to investigate how technology and project developers try to use devices as intermediaries to increase household participation in smart energy grid projects and change their energy-consuming practices. The result showed that developers primarily focus on the functionality of their devices and user interfaces. However, it also highlights that they often overlook the integration of these technologies within the broader socio-cultural and political contexts that critically influence technology adoption.
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35. |
- Fazey, Ioan, et al.
(författare)
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Ten essentials for action-oriented and second order energy transitions, transformations and climate change research
- 2018
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Ingår i: Energy Research and Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 40, s. 54-70
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The most critical question for climate research is no longer about the problem, but about how to facilitate the transformative changes necessary to avoid catastrophic climate-induced change. Addressing this question, however, will require massive upscaling of research that can rapidly enhance learning about transformations. Ten essentials for guiding action-oriented transformation and energy research are therefore presented, framed in relation to second-order science. They include: (1) Focus on transformations to low-carbon, resilient living; (2) Focus on solution processes; (3) Focus on ‘how to’ practical knowledge; (4) Approach research as occurring from within the system being intervened; (5) Work with normative aspects; (6) Seek to transcend current thinking; (7) Take a multi-faceted approach to understand and shape change; (8) Acknowledge the value of alternative roles of researchers; (9) Encourage second-order experimentation; and (10) Be reflexive. Joint application of the essentials would create highly adaptive, reflexive, collaborative and impact-oriented research able to enhance capacity to respond to the climate challenge. At present, however, the practice of such approaches is limited and constrained by dominance of other approaches. For wider transformations to low carbon living and energy systems to occur, transformations will therefore also be needed in the way in which knowledge is produced and used.
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36. |
- Fazey, Ioan, et al.
(författare)
-
Transforming knowledge systems for life on Earth : Visions of future systems and how to get there
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 70
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Formalised knowledge systems, including universities and research institutes, are important for contemporary societies. They are, however, also arguably failing humanity when their impact is measured against the level of progress being made in stimulating the societal changes needed to address challenges like climate change. In this research we used a novel futures-oriented and participatory approach that asked what future envisioned knowledge systems might need to look like and how we might get there. Findings suggest that envisioned future systems will need to be much more collaborative, open, diverse, egalitarian, and able to work with values and systemic issues. They will also need to go beyond producing knowledge about our world to generating wisdom about how to act within it. To get to envisioned systems we will need to rapidly scale methodological innovations, connect innovators, and creatively accelerate learning about working with intractable challenges. We will also need to create new funding schemes, a global knowledge commons, and challenge deeply held assumptions. To genuinely be a creative force in supporting longevity of human and non-human life on our planet, the shift in knowledge systems will probably need to be at the scale of the enlightenment and speed of the scientific and technological revolution accompanying the second World War. This will require bold and strategic action from governments, scientists, civic society and sustained transformational intent.
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37. |
- Flostrand, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
-
Better together : Harnessing motivations for energy utility crowdsourcing activities
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 48, s. 57-65
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Energy utility firms operate under varying mandates throughout most of the world and typically must operate reliably with long planning cycles and requirements to meet bureaucratic scrutiny and regulatory toll gating to achieve both discrete plan approvals as well as their ongoing licenses to operate. One vehicle for gaining external insights and involving the stakeholders is crowdsourcing. Energy utility firms have a set of distinguishing characteristics (i.e. regulatory processes and stakeholder groups) that they must consider when implementing crowdsourcing activities to aid their planning and innovation strategies. To achieve constructive participation requires understanding and engaging the motivations of the population from which a firm wishes to draw input. We assert that customers’ interest, facilitated by digital age communication channels, can provide utility operators with an accessible, valuable resource to assist a wide range of planning and innovation activities. We use the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) lens, grounded by a set of in-depth interviews with utility industry professionals, to articulate motivations for members of the external customer community to provide value to the firms through crowdsourcing activities. We develop five propositions that collectively identify how energy firms should use SDT elements to design crowdsourcing activities.
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38. |
- Francart, Nicolas, 1993-, et al.
(författare)
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Demands, default options and definitions : How artefacts mediate sustainability in public housing projects in Sweden and Cyprus
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 92
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sustainable building design practices are influenced by requirements, guidelines, criteria for green procurement and certification, assessment tools such as life cycle assessment, etc. This study investigates how such artefacts support or define aspirations towards sustainability, through case studies of public housing projects in Sweden and Cyprus. The study first illustrates how constraints mediated by artefacts set boundaries to the range of available sustainable design options. On one hand, fulfilling sustainability requirements conveyed in regulations, certifications and directives is a major driver of designers' involvement with sustainable design. On the other hand, cost calculations, procurement laws and development plans exclude certain design options. Moreover, default solutions and standardised design guidelines within the organisation streamline and simplify the design process, indirectly determining what sustainable design options are considered. However, these demands and default options are also bent and adapted on a case-by-case basis. The ways in which sustainable design arises from the interplay between artefacts and actors' agency differed significantly between the Swedish and Cypriot cases. Swedish actors' operational definition of sustainability is strongly codified and enforced through inter-connected artefacts. The Miljo center dot byggnad certification is often a de facto definition of sustainability used by actors to set sustainability criteria and targets. Environmental databases for construction products act as black boxes, implicitly determining what aspects of sustainability are addressed in design decisions. Conversely, Cypriot designers' work with sustainability depends to a larger extent on their motivation, experience and ability to convince their peers.
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39. |
- Fridahl, Mathias, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
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Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS): Global potential, investment preferences, and deployment barriers
- 2018
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Ingår i: Energy Research and Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 42, s. 155-165
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Keeping global warming well below 2 °C entails radically transforming global energy production and use. However, one important mitigation option, the use of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), has so far received only limited attention as regards the sociopolitical preconditions for its deployment. Using questionnaire data from UN climate change conferences, this paper explores the influence of expertise, actor type, and origin on respondents’ a) preferences for investing in BECCS, b) views of the role of BECCS as a mitigation technology, globally and domestically, and c) assessment of possible domestic barriers to BECCS deployment. Non-parametric statistical analysis reveals the low priority assigned to investments in BECCS, the anticipated high political and social constraints on deployment, and a gap between its low perceived domestic potential to contribute to mitigation and a slightly higher perceived global potential. The most important foreseen deployment constraints are sociopolitical, which in turn influence the economic feasibility of BECCS. However, these constraints (e.g. lack of policy incentives and social acceptance) are poorly captured in climate scenarios, a mismatch indicating a need for both complemented model scenarios and further research into sociopolitical preconditions for BECCS.
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40. |
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41. |
- Gawel, Erik, et al.
(författare)
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Security of supply as a political bargaining issue : Why Germany opted against capacity markets
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 86
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The large-scale deployment of intermittent renewable energy sources for electricity generation has raised concerns regarding the future security of supply. Previous research has studied efficient reforms of electricity markets to address these concerns. In contrast, our paper aims to explain actual policy choices made to provide security of supply. For this purpose, we develop a Public Choice framework, which looks at three interacting decision variables: the timing of regulatory intervention, the decision-making process and the market design. We apply this framework to study the policy debates and decisions related to Germanyâs 2016 electricity market reform. The analysis builds on the rich empirical material made available through a consultation process preceding the German parliamentary decision. The electricity market reform eventually combined measures to strengthen the energy-only market and the implementation of only limited new capacity payments through a strategic reserve. This was despite the fact that conventional electricity producers strongly lobbied for a fully-fledged capacity market by which they would have benefited from new broad-band capacity payments. Our analysis suggests that the eventual market design decision was strongly affected by the timing of regulatory intervention (existing oversupply of generation capacity) and the decision-making process (an open consultation process revealing broad opposition against capacity markets).
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42. |
- Giotitsas, Christos, et al.
(författare)
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Energy governance as a commons : Engineering alternative socio-technical configurations
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6326 .- 2214-6296. ; 84
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Transitioning into a sustainable energy system is becoming ever more pressing as the reality of an anthropogenic ecological crisis becomes difficult to ignore. Due to the complexity of the matter, proposed solutions often address the symptoms of the current socioeconomic configuration rather than its core. To conceptualise possible future energy systems, this Perspective focuses on the disconnect between science and technology and engi-neering studies. On the one hand, this disconnect leads to social science research that passively critiques rather than contributes to tackling societal issues in practice. On the other, it produces technical work limited by the incumbent conceptualisations of economic activity and organisational configurations around production without capturing the broader social and political dynamics. We thus propose a schema for bridging this divide that uses the “commons” as an umbrella concept. We apply this framework on the hardware aspect of a conceptual energy system, which builds on networked microgrids powered by open-source, lower cost, adaptable, socially responsible and sustainable technology. This Perspective is a call to engineers and social scientists alike to form genuine transdisciplinary collaborations for developing radical alternatives to the energy conundrum
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43. |
- Gormally, Alexandra, et al.
(författare)
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‘Doing good science’ : The impact of invisible energy policies on laboratory energy demand in higher education
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier Limited. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 52, s. 123-131
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Education is the second largest consumer of energy in the service sector, however, little research to date has focused on the link between education policy and energy demand. Using a case study, this paper explores the role of invisible energy policies in Higher Education (HE). We make a distinctive contribution to debates about invisible energy policy by applying concepts from governmentality to show how different policies and technologies of governance come in to conflict in practice. And, we argue that although there are a number of institutional and national-level policies directly related to sustainability (including energy) there are also a number of conflicting priorities, most notably linked to the neoliberalisation of HE. Our case study focuses on teaching and research laboratories and empirically explores the impacts of both intentional and non-intentional energy policy in these spaces. Specifically this research highlights that the ability to ‘do good science’ has implications for demand management that go beyond research and teaching laboratory activities, and into the wider realm of HE institutions and policies.
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44. |
- Hagbert, Pernilla, 1986-, et al.
(författare)
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Transitions on the home front : A story of sustainable living beyond eco-efficiency
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 31:Supplement C, s. 240-248
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The environmental impact associated with modern ways of living is widely recognized and has been increasingly problematized. A prevailing discourse in sustainable housing tends to focus on building performance, along with compelling stories of “green” lifestyles and attractive urban housing concepts, while avoiding storylines that suggest more profound changes in society and everyday life. This paper argues that in order to address the resource-intensity of contemporary ways of living, we need to engage with perspectives of transition that go beyond technical eco-efficient solutions. Other narratives are therefore explored, based in empirical insights from home visits and in-depth interviews with people seeking less impactful and more self-sufficient ways of living in the context of an affluent society as Sweden. The paper looks at how alternative narratives are manifested in (and through) the home as a starting point for transitions to a low-impact society. Highlighting aspects of agency, situated in the everyday and in the existing built fabric, these “home front transitioners” provide another story – one that questions mainstream assumptions of a pre-defined green lifestyle, and contributes to a more diversified perspective on sustainable living.
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45. |
- Hansson, Anders, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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The underworld of tomorrow? How subsurface carbon dioxide storage leaked out of the public debate
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 90
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This perspective paper illustrates that the critical debate regarding geological storage of carbon dioxide has been discursively marginalised in recent years. However, two crucial factors make it reasonable to assume that significant storage-related uncertainties and challenges still exist.Firstly, experiences of geological storage are primarily related to enhanced oil recovery. Secondly, recent assessments indicate a doubling of the required quantity compared to what was envisioned back in 2005. Therefore, there seems to be a contradiction: as the visions of geological carbon dioxide storage have grown increasingly ambitious, the risks and challenges associated with storage have been marginalised.The paper suggests geological storage should become a topic of concern for critical social science and concludes with a reflection on five tentative explanations to the discursive marginalisation: 1) Increasing experience and knowledge have resulted in reduced risks; 2) The climate crisis and urgency have supported a broader acceptance of controversial mitigation options; 3) A shifting focus from fossil fuels with CCS to bioenergy with CCS has introduced new and salient problems that make storage-related challenges seem relatively less significant; 4) Coupling CCS to bioenergy has disarmed critics that primarily argue against prolongation of the fossil fuel era, and finally 5) Familiarisation and normalisation processes.
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46. |
- Hasselqvist, Hanna, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Household energy resilience: Shifting perspectives to reveal opportunities for renewable energy futures in affluent contexts
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Energy Research and Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 88
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Energy resilience is an important focus for energy policy and research, since the energy system is increasingly facing challenges such as power shortages, e.g. due to increased renewable energy production, and risks of power outages caused by extreme weathers. Typically, energy resilience in these contexts focuses on infrastructure and securing supply of electricity despite disturbances. This paper contributes a complementary perspective on resilience, which takes households as a starting point for investigating resilience. Building on understandings of resilience from several disciplines, we suggest a definition of household energy resilience that can be used to explore how households can ensure a good life in a future with variable availability of electricity. Furthermore, we draw on current ideas of future domestic energy use in energy affluent contexts (backup energy sources, energy efficiency, flexibility, and energy sufficiency) to create a framework for exploring household energy resilience. We find a potential for diversity within and between the different ideas, that is not always present in mainstream visions of future energy use. With the perspective of household energy resilience, we wish to challenge the perception of electricity demand as non-negotiable and to reveal opportunities for supporting households in becoming more resilient in an uncertain future.
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47. |
- Hopkins, Debbie, et al.
(författare)
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Aeromasculinities and the fallacy of sustainable aviation
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 106
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Despite growing recognition of the material impacts of fossil fuel extraction and use, many economic sectors remain highly dependent on these fuels. Amid growing pressure to - at a minimum - appear to be doing something, businesses increasingly communicate the actions they (seek to) take to reduce their environmental impacts. Oftentimes they aim to build a sense of compatible coexistence of the sector with particular modes of sustainability. For air transport, 'sustainable aviation' has emerged as a container term for a suite of actions proposed by sectoral actors in seeking to align the sector with social and environmental sustainability. This paper critically interrogates 'sustainable aviation' through an analysis of the websites and reports of 14 international and regional airlines. Our analysis reveals the multiple and diverse ways that dominant logics (1) underpin the status quo, (2) depend on 'the science', (3) support techno-organisational changes and (4) prioritise sectoral growth. By recognising the gendered nature of environmentalism, we suggest that 'sustainable aviation' can be viewed as an active enactment of aeromasculinities - a gendered system of thinking, being and doing which forecloses radical action and change required for a climate-safe and just energy future.
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48. |
- Hosseini, Keyvan, et al.
(författare)
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A wolf in sheep's clothing : Exposing the structural violence of private electric automobility
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 99
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The world is running out of time to avoid cataclysmic climate impacts. Therefore, determining which decarbonisation strategies are more effective and inclusive in reducing anthropogenic dependency on fossil fuels is vital for governments' decisions on investment. This research argues that the electrification of private automobility is neither effective nor equitable. Considering the current electricity mix of the grid, this electrification merely shifts the CO2 emissions and other pollutants from urban to rural areas. The strategy of private automobility electrification does not look beyond the problem of tailpipe emissions and hence cannot eliminate the deficiencies of the car-dependent system that require system-wide solutions, such as traffic congestion and road accidents. Prioritising this strategy not only maintains existing inequities but also increases social injustice and delays the implementation of more effective interventions. We argue that using private EVs structurally violates the biosphere and human communities in three ways: (1) production of inequities, (2) pollution and waste, and (3) the space of the exception (the ‘Electric Vehicle Bubble’). Finally, we conclude that eradicating private automobility is necessary to realise climate and transport justice. Focusing on inclusive strategies, such as supporting public transportation, shared mobility, and active travel modes, instead of offering incentives for EVs, are the means of progressive redistribution of wealth and can satisfactorily meet people's basic needs and governmental climate targets.
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49. |
- Isaksson, Charlotta, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
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Active, passive, non-existing or conditional? : Social relations shaping energy use at workplaces
- 2019
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 51, s. 148-155
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Energy efficiency concerns the entire workplace and a cooperative approach is important for achieving ambitious energy reduction targets. Despite this, many organisations still mainly regard energy efficiency as a technical issue involving just a few specialists. A focus on the social relations and processes that shape work on energy issues is lacking. The aim of this paper is to illuminate and explore social relations between the staff driving energy issues and their co-workers. The analysis presented is based upon two features shaping their mutual engagement for reducing energy use: the communication strategy on energy issues undertaken by the workplace and the support for energy efficiency and conservation among the staff. The study provides insights gained from an interview study done in a Swedish organisation as well as from social science research in the field. The result is a conceptual framework that describes four relationships between the drivers of change and their co-workers. These relationships are characterized as active, passive, non-existing and conditional engagement in energy efficiency and conservation. The framework can be used as a tool for identifying social constraints and possibilities for reducing the use of energy at workplaces as well as in other contexts. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd
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50. |
- Isaksson, Charlotta, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
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Dividing or sharing? : A time-geographical examination of eating, labour, and energy consumption in Sweden
- 2015
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Ingår i: Energy Research & Social Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 2214-6296 .- 2214-6326. ; 10, s. 180-191
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Many energy consuming household activities are collectively organized, while in information campaigns for energy conservation they are regarded as planned and performed by individuals in isolation. This article aims at scrutinizing this mismatch by analytically examining how energy-consuming activities are allocated and organized among household members and explore the implications for energy consumption. Time-geographic concepts ground for the investigation and empirical illustrations are taken from a uniquely rich historic Swedish pilot study on time-use from 1996. The pilot offers time-diaries from members of the same households which allow analysis on activity allocation in the households. We present a conceptual framework with two overarching principles of activity allocation; project division and project sharing. Visualizations of daily activity sequences from time-diaries in the pilot study are used to analyze the household project providing meals. The overall result indicates that the ways households allocate and coordinate energy consuming activities matter to energy use. Consequently, it is important to consider the household with its members for understanding daily energy consuming activities and people’s possibilities to conserve energy. If reconfigured to fit into the interlinked everyday life activity sequences of household members, energy advice and information campaigns might improve the opportunities to reach their targets.
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