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CenSES annual report 2015
Local governments are important actors in low carbon
energy transitions. Bente Rygg’s recent dissertation studies
in detail how local governments engage in development of
renewable energy, what strategies they use and how this can
be understood theoretically.
The core of the dissertation is structured in three papers.
1. “Wind power—an assault on local landscapes or an
opportunity for modernization? “ Energy Policy 48:167-
175, 2012. This paper studies local governments who have
developed wind power parks, and the arguments used by
the involved actors in the debates concerning wind power
park developments.
2. “Paving the way for heat. Local government policies for
developing bioenergy in Norway.” International Journal of
RA 1 consists of four work packages:
RA 1 consists of four work packages:
• WP 1.1. Low carbon energy transition policies in Norway –
assessments and strategies.
• WP 1.2. Comparative analysis of governance and public
policy for energy system transformations.
• WP 1.3. Public engagement to build energy citizenship.
• WP 1.4. Synthesis and interaction with the other research
areas.
The work packages were revised and reconfigured during
2014, based on achievements and experiences. WP1.3 was
moved from RA 4 to RA 1.
Research in 2015
The efforts in 2015 have above all been directed at the
conclusion of PhD projects. Four candidates successfully
defended their thesis:
• Marius Støylen Korsnes: “Chinese Renewable Struggles:
Innovation, the Arts of the State and Offshore Wind
Technology” (December 1, 2015).
• Robert Lorenzo Jomisko: “Under utredning. Om
læreprosesser og kunnskapshåndtering i klima-, energi-
og miljøpolitikk” (Under investigation. About processes of
learning andmanagement of knowledge in climate, energy,
and environmental policy). (September 4, 2015).
• Eirik Frøhaug Swensen: «Kjærlighet og forviklinger» ‐
Snublesteiner for utviklingen av karbonfangst og -lagring
RA 1 Policy Making and Transition Strategies
Renewable Energy as a Community Concern: How Local Communities Face the
challenge of Increasing Use and Production of Renewable Energy
(CCS) i Norge (“Love and intricacies” – Stumbling stones
for development of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in
Norway). (May 13, 2015).
• Bente Johnsen Rygg: “Energy as a Community Concern.
How Local Communities Face the Challenge of Increasing
Use and Production of Renewable Energy”. (April 17, 2015).
The main focus in RA 1 is on sustainability transitions with
respect to energy. In 2015 we developed an actionoriented
approach as an alternative to the system perspective that
dominates in sustainability transition studies. This has
allowed an explicit focus on how transitions are done, and
which strategies that are being pursued.
One result from2015 is Heidrun Åm’s paper on solar scientists
as transition actors, published in Environmental Innovation
and Societal Transitions. She found that solar scientists
pursue mainly two lines of action: improving efficiency, and
challenging negative hegemonic representations of solar
energy.
Much effort has also been put into issues related to public
engagement and energy citizenship. Two of our published
papers were focused upon users of smart grid technologies.
William Throndsen and Marianne Ryghaug’s paper in Energy
Research & Social Science argue that smart grid technology
holds promise as a technology of participation because it
brings forward engaging devices that may act as vehicles of
Sustainable Energy Planning and Management, 2014 (4):
57-70.This secondpaper analyses how local governments’
technology policies affect the development of bioenergy
projects.
3. “Adjusting, adapting or advancing: the role of local
governments in the development of renewable energy”.
To appear in Energy Research and Social Science. The
third paper examines the role of local governments in
development of renewable energy, emphasizing how
different renewable energy technology offers different
options for local government action.
The dissertation highlights the role of local governments
as transition actors, focusing on their efforts in four
areas: (1) support for innovation, (2) infrastructure