Spatial processes in urban energy transitions: considering an assemblage of Socio-Energetic Nodes

Gilles Debizet (), Antoine Tabourdeau, Caroline Gauthier () and Philippe Menanteau
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Gilles Debizet: PACTE - Pacte, Laboratoire de sciences sociales - IEPG - Sciences Po Grenoble - Institut d'études politiques de Grenoble - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - UGA [2016-2019] - Université Grenoble Alpes [2016-2019]
Antoine Tabourdeau: PACTE - Pacte, Laboratoire de sciences sociales - IEPG - Sciences Po Grenoble - Institut d'études politiques de Grenoble - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - UGA [2016-2019] - Université Grenoble Alpes [2016-2019]
Caroline Gauthier: EESC-GEM Grenoble Ecole de Management, GAEL - Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquée de Grenoble - Grenoble INP - Institut polytechnique de Grenoble - Grenoble Institute of Technology - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - UGA [2016-2019] - Université Grenoble Alpes [2016-2019]

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Abstract: Urban and energy transitions are increasingly seen as being deeply intertwined. The way this relation impacts our approach to energy transition is a current issue for research. Implementing renewable energy sources in built-up areas challenges incumbent supply chains and large technical systems, especially for electricity, gas and heat. Approaches to transition such as the Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) highlight the transformation of socio-technical regimes but have been criticised for overstating stability of regime and for overlooking spatial (and consequently urban) processes. Other concepts are required in order to understand local and non-local relationships between niches and regimes. This paper suggests a constructivist and pragmatic concept for urban energy transition, the Socio-Energetic Node (SEN), thanks to which actors and artefacts can be traced within energy networks. The SEN is a group of elements, which collects, converts and/or supplies energy, built by a decision-maker interacting with stakeholders and regime rules. Having identified SENs in four French eco-districts, we observed how they took shape around continuous energy flows and across decision-making boundaries, highlighting how spatial-scale and place-specificity impact on energy transition.

Keywords: Cities; Socio-technical regimes; Renewable energies; Assemblage; Sustainability transition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

Published in Journal of Cleaner Production, 2016, Transitions to Sustainable Consumption and Production in Cities, 134 (330-341), pp.330-341. ⟨10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.02.140⟩

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Working Paper: Spatial processes in urban energy transitions: considering an assemblage of Socio-Energetic Nodes (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02632211

DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.02.140

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