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This paper sets out to analyse organisations in the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE), working in the field of energy provision, and their contribution to the so-called energy transition from the perspective of social innovation. By showing the practical application of the concept of social innovation and its convergence and synergies with the SSE, we review the extent to which Basque Renewable Energy SSE alternatives are experiences that incorporate socially innovative elements. In addition, we study three cases through these approaches in order to observe the real and potential benefits that experiences based on social innovation can bring to energy transition. The main contribution of our research is to analyse the means by which certain initiatives are implemented through projects framed using the most prominent theoretical models focused on energy transition, social innovation and a social and solidarity-based economy, all aimed at achieving a low-carbon society.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Italian policies in the field of sustainable energy transition have supported mainly the deployment of large-sized renewable energy plants. At the same time the transition was fostered also through small or medium plants and in rural and mountain areas. In this paper we present the case study of Sasso di Castalda, a little mountain municipality located in the Basilicata region (Southern Italy), one of the poorest and the most sparsely populated areas of Italy. The main theoretical assumption is that the sustainable energy policies designed by National (or supra-National) institutions are translated in practice at the local level through “performative connections”. The sociology of translation (Callon) is adopted to investigate how ecological modernization is fostered in the energy field at the local level in disadvantaged contexts. This research focuses on the connections which shaped the sustainable transition in the community, considering environmental governance and regulations as well as local social practices. What the research shows is the relevance of the performative relations enacted in a multilevel and heterogeneous network. Indeed, within this pattern diversified skills were activated, along with specific technological and organizational configurations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we describe energy policy discourses and their story-lines in German parliamentary debates, and trace their evolution over the past decades. Through content analysis and coding with MAXQDA, changes in the discourses and in the use of story-lines by different political parties are analyzed. Our study shows that while the concept of a transition towards a nuclear-free, renewables-based energy system became hegemonic within three decades, the discourse itself underwent major changes. Energy Transition was de-radicalized and became part of a discourse of Ecological Modernization, thus aligning with mainstream economic logic. There are still considerable differences in the story-lines narrated by parliamentarians about pathways to Energy Transition and its effects. Discursive struggles into the meaning and the means of the transition project continue, suggesting that discourse structuration is far from complete. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper identifies conditions for the rapid diffusion of what may be part of the solution for global sustainable energy – hydrogen – by drawing a comparison with the contemporary history of the Internet. The Cold War drove the take-off of the Internet and state regulation ensured that the market on which its rapid diffusion came to depend was not controlled by corporations. To take-off and start to diffuse, hydrogen energy could similarly have to be considered a “public good”. However, the comparison with the Internet reveals differences too. The Internet diffused rapidly among the public at low cost to individual users, starting in the mid 1980s and kicking off in the 1990s. To achieve affordable hydrogen transport in the long term, many drivers might have to forgo cars for public transport. Moreover, global sustainable energy demands cooperation between nations rather than the conflict that spurred the Internet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chilean energy transition has been internationally recognized as a case of successful public policy in the promotion of renewable energies, even being defined as an "energy revolution". However, a preliminary analysis of the process allow us to sustain that the incorporation of non-conventional renewable sources to the energy matrix has not modified the technocratic model ofmarket-based management, the ownership structure of the projects, nor has it implied an advance towards democratic and decentralized energy systems that promote local development and the effective participation of communities in energy decision-making. It is concluded that the socio-technical process of the Chilean energy transition has given rise to a post-political energy condition, and that behind the technological success and consensus around the transition there is a perpetuation of power relations and structures of capitalist appropriation and management of energy resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the intensification of development cooperation in the field of biogenetic fuels, in particular bioethanol, in light of increasing knowledge on the positive and negative impacts of biofuel production and use. Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, biofuels made from biomass have become an important alternative nonfossil energy source in the EU, improving the CO2 balance, ensuring competitiveness and increasing the security of energy supply by reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Recent studies have shown that the EU's cultivation capacities are limited and have revealed the negative impact of biofuels on food security, land use and land tenure. This article investigates the case of biofuel production in Senegal, as the champion of the OPEC verte, against the background of the 20/20/20 targets of the European Union and the implementation strategies of France and Sweden. The empirical results of the study lead to the conclusion that the intervention of specific actors and the forecast of new technologies play a crucial role for stabilizing the network in favor of biofuel production and use against the background of increased criticism of the negative impacts of the enhanced production of biofuels. This article aims to theoretically ground this argument by applying the actor-network theory of Bruno Latour to show how the issue of biofuels has become relevant and what this implies for democracy theory and the efficiency of the system of European 'governance' in the framework of globalization. The article concludes with a fresh look at international relations and, more specifically, the relations between developed and developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of sustainable energy has been slow. We compare it with a historical example of rapid innovation - the first factory system. The first factory system in the English Derwent Valley mills in the eighteenth century was based not on new technology like the steam engine, but on the familiar water mill. The locale was less prosperous than others in its agriculture and cottage textile industry, far from the English trade hub London and difficult to access. The drivers were 'bottom-up'. Among the lessons drawn for sustainable energy are that bottom-up innovation, using whichever technology is practical in the context and local skills and know-how, might be a viable alternative to the current attempt at top-down innovation. The locales likely to succeed would have human resources, rather than significant finance capital, but a growing market for their products, the development of which is underpinned by institutions of the state and international cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]