A typology of intermediary organizations and their impact on sustainability transition policies

• Sustainability transitions encompass changes in existing socio-technological systems. In this context, scholars have emphasized the roles that intermediaries can play for sustainability transition. However, in the literature, the organizations or actors considered to act as intermediaries are very diverse and the concept of intermediary is used interchangeably between contexts. There is a risk that policy makers face difficulties understanding differences among intermediaries and consequently use some intermediaries for unfitting purposes. In this article, we propose to identify the similarities and differences among intermediaries, which are relevant for policy design for sustainability transitions. We base our comparison on three main characteristics: intermediaries' source of funding, their scope of action and the target recipients of their services. Our analysis indicates that these differences have an impact on intermediaries' short-term or long-term orientation, actor-level or system-level focus, and demand-side or supply-side target. We end the article by discussing the implications for policy design.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Annan samhällsvetenskap -- Tvärvetenskapliga studier inom samhällsvetenskap (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Other Social Sciences -- Social Sciences Interdisciplinary (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Statsvetenskap -- Studier av offentlig förvaltning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Political Science -- Public Administration Studies (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap -- Systemvetenskap, informationssystem och informatik med samhällsvetenskaplig inriktning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Media and Communications -- Information Systems, Social aspects (hsv//eng)

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Naturresursteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Environmental Engineering (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Sustainability transitions

Intermediaries

Renewable energy technology

Transition policy

Environmental innovations

Publication and Content Type

art (subject category)

ref (subject category)