Systems Thinking for Climate Change and Clean Energy

Hassan Qudrat-Ullah ()
Additional contact information
Hassan Qudrat-Ullah: School of Administrative Studies, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-16

Abstract: Addressing climate change and advancing clean energy transitions demand holistic approaches that capture complex, interconnected system behaviors. This review focuses on the application of causal loop diagrams (CLDs) as a core systems-thinking methodology to understand and manage dynamic feedback within environmental, social, and technological domains. CLDs visually map the reinforcing and balancing loops that drive climate risks, clean energy adoption, and sustainable development, offering intuitive insights into system structure and behavior. Through a synthesis of empirical studies and case examples, this paper demonstrates how CLDs help identify leverage points in renewable energy policy, carbon management, and ecosystem resilience. Despite their strengths in simplifying complexity and enhancing stakeholder communication, challenges remain—including data gaps, model validation, and the integration of diverse knowledge systems. The review also examines recent innovations that improve CLD effectiveness, such as hybrid modeling approaches and digital tools that enhance transparency and decision support. By emphasizing CLDs’ unique capacity to reveal feedback mechanisms critical for climate action and energy planning, this study provides actionable recommendations for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners seeking to leverage systems thinking for transformative, sustainable solutions.

Keywords: systems thinking; causal loop diagrams (CLDs); climate change mitigation; clean energy transitions; feedback mechanisms; sustainable development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/15/4200/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/15/4200/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:15:p:4200-:d:1719638

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().