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The electric power sector in Afghanistan suffers from numerous challenges. Roughly 70% of the population has no access to electricity, and 90% of those without electricity live in rural areas. The vast majority of its power is imported from neighboring countries, and is often subject to outages. Since 2002, more than $4 billion has been spent on Afghanistan's electrification in cooperation with international funders, yet this has not increased electrification to the level anticipated, particularly in rural areas. This study uses the Institutional Analysis and Development framework to examine the policy and institutional barriers to expanding the power grid. Looking at major laws, policies and actors that comprise the energy sector, and the patterns of interaction among them, this study finds that ambiguity, overlaps and contradiction in the scope of work of five government ministries exacerbates the current challenges. Moreover, the lack of a coordinated development agenda among the government of Afghanistan and international partners has led to fragmented planning and implementation of projects, inadequate prioritization of investments, and much of the work being done by consultants or short-term contractors. The result has been low rates of electrification, diminished institutional capacity and minimal private sector involvement in the energy sector.

California is a pioneer in energy system innovations, and it is not surprising that the state is leading the nation in the adoption of microgrids. However, the inherent characteristics of microgrids make them challenging to integrate and operate within the current energy system. This is mainly because unlike other decentralized energy systems, microgrids often tend to interact with the centralized grid infrastructure as both a parallel and a competing distribution grid model at the micro scale. The adoption and integration of microgrids, therefore, represents a socio-technical transition in the electric power sector. In this context, this study relies on the Multi-Level Perspective framework to examine the drivers, contexts, processes, and policies that have enabled an ongoing transition in California's electricity system that has allowed adoption of microgrids. The analysis shows that even though several drivers carry weight, including resilience concerns and market factors, California's pathway to microgrids is largely driven by the legislative and regulatory push toward clean energy and a symbiotic relationship between powerful regime actors and a microgrid niche. This is enabling a transformation in the state's energy system, in which the entry of microgrids is subtly facilitated by the regime in a way that does not threaten the current utility-dominated electricity system. By providing a detailed account of how a decentralized energy system that challenges the centralized grid regime has made its place in the centralized grid regime in California, this paper identifies the key facets that affect the integration of microgrids in the broader context of energy transitions.

The increasing penetration of microgrids in appears to be part of a transition toward electricity distribution systems that are more decentralized than the current system. With microgrids gaining space as a competing and parallel distribution grid model and challenging the current centralized grid system, studying their adoption presents an opportunity to understand this socio-technical transition in the energy system. This study looks at this ongoing change in the United States and applies the Multi-Level Perspective framework to explore the drivers, contexts, processes, policies, institutions, and interactions that affect the adoption of microgrids. Through a qualitative case study analysis of California, New York, and Oregon, the study finds that natural disasters, massive power outages and climate change concerns have acted as key pressures for the adoption of microgrids. At the same time, the electric power system maintains important stabilization mechanisms, such as the availability of cheap and abundant electricity, as well a market structure that limits the opportunities of entry and profit for third-party developers, which make it harder for niche innovations like microgrids to break in. In addition, this study finds that state support in the form of funding and legislation is crucial for nurturing the microgrid niche market.

In 2016, the state of Oregon passed the Oregon Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Plan, which doubles the state's renewable portfolio standard to 50% and eliminates the use of coal-fired electricity by 2030. The research presented here examines the central factors that contributed to passage of the legislation. Interviews were conducted with individuals closely involved in the bill's passage and who have extensive knowledge of energy policy in the state. The findings were analyzed using the Multiple Streams Approach, which analyzes public policy to understand how certain items emerge onto the political agenda, creating opportunities for policy change. The research found that cooperation between the utilities and environmental groups was crucial to its success. Another key factor was a threatened ballot initiative that prompted the utilities to negotiate the alternative that was eventually passed in the legislature. The collaboration between the state's utilities and environmental groups represents an example of passing environmental legislation that can be emulated elsewhere. However, the context of the bill's passage, which took place during a short legislative session that did not allow for extensive consideration and excluded the Public Utilities Commission, also contributed to an erosion of trust and damaged relationships.

As it undergoes rapid evolutionary change, the electric power sector has become highly fragmented and complex, with divided responsibilities, lopsided investments, and insufficient coordination to set goals and meet them. The use of regional collaborative governance structures might reimagine the goals and governance of the sector.

There has been a rapid adoption of Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) programs in California. CCAs allow communities to choose their electricity supply through a locally-controlled public agency, disrupting the electric power sector as part of an energy transition. An analysis of how stakeholders in Sonoma and San Diego counties have pursued the implementation of CCAs is conducted through interviews. The findings demonstrate how macro-level pressures created opportunities for niche policies to be developed and challenge the utility-centered electricity model.

In 2008, China launched the Green Securities Policy to increase sustainability practices among companies listed on Chinese stock markets. An integral component of the policy is the environmental disclosure regulation, which directs publicly traded Chinese companies in 14 highly polluting industries to report required environmental information. This research explores the Green Securities Policy in two ways. First, it determines the compliance level with environmental disclosure requirements from 2008 to 2010 by companies covered under the Green Securities Policy. The findings indicate that about 60% of listed companies report the required environmental information at some level. Second, the research examines the dynamics underlying environmental disclosure by Chinese listed companies through the lens of ecological modernization theory. While China’s ecological modernization has created an increasingly favorable environment for environmental disclosure regulation, the research highlights problems that have impeded the progress of environmental disclosure by listed companies.