Speaker
Description
The energy transition has become a crucial issue in recent years, particularly regarding urban sustainability. However, current academic and practical discussions often emphasise management perspectives and technical expertise within a political context shaped by historical and contemporary practices. This paper explores a planning perspective essential for a just urban energy transition, focusing on deliberative planning processes, the evolution of values, and the practical judgment informed by the reflections of planning professionals.
The objective is to develop a planning perspective largely overlooked in discussions about a just urban energy transition. This lack of focus has resulted in various unaddressed challenges, particularly regarding the dynamic interaction between the socio-spatial development of urban environments and the energy transition. This interaction involves critical issues such as energy efficiency, flexibility, and production. The connection between urban and energy sectors is becoming increasingly important for planning future urban energy transitions. Although there have been advancements in both areas, adopting a planning perspective can enhance our understanding of how energy transitions can be stimulated through urban processes, practices, and transformations.
A significant question from this planning perspective is how we can move beyond the simplistic dichotomy of fossil fuels versus renewable energy and the distinction between clean and dirty urban energy transitions. There is a pressing need to develop new methodologies that address the complexities of urban processes. Patsy Healey's concept that futures are 'path contingent' rather than strictly 'path dependent' emphasises the importance of examining specific experiences and their relevance in various contexts rather than adhering only to generalised universal principles.
Through three contemporary Danish case studies, this research analyses reflective practices related to urban energy transition processes. The case studies involve co-creation processes in renewable energy planning, planning for energy communities, and developing positive-energy districts at the neighbourhood level in three diverse Danish contexts. Being often quoted for its advanced progression in the energy transition, the Danish cases offer valuable examples on how national frames and expert knowledge work in the urban context uncovering emerging power dynamics, conflicts, and resistances. By examining metaphors, learning processes, and necessary adjustments to planning routines, the research focuses on how reflection significantly influence how planning professionals develop narratives for just urban energy transitions while also considering urban transformation processes and the importance of public participation. Exploring ongoing projects and processes of urban energy transitions critical aspects emerge in relation to enhancing social sustainability and social justice. These considerations raise essential issues for urban energy transition processes and the power dynamics that affect democratic urban energy planning practices. The presentation concludes by advocating for a renewed interest in a 'phronetic' planning approach to encourage and incorporate practical wisdom into practitioners' work to foster the critical reflexivity needed for urban energy transition planning processes while also addressing the ethical implications related to social justice issues. Key considerations include existing governance structures, regulatory frameworks, stakeholder engagement, and strategic negotiations. The findings from this analysis enhance urban energy transition strategies by bridging critical insights from planning theory and practice into existing STS and transition management approaches.
References
Briassoulis, H., 2023. The Making of Good Public Plans Phronesis, Phronetic Planning Research and Assemblage Thinking. Planning Theory, 22(1), pp.58-84.
Collins, H., Evans, R. and Weinel, M., 2017. STS as Science or Politics?. Social studies of science, 47(4), pp.580-586.
Flyvbjerg, B., 2008. Aristotle, foucault and progressive phronesis: outline of an applied ethics of sustainable development. Critical Essays in Planning Theory, 2, pp.65-83.
Healey, P., 2012. The universal and the contingent: Some reflections on the transnational flow of planning ideas and practices. Planning Theory, 11(2), pp.188-207.
Rutherford, J. and Coutard, O., 2014. Urban energy transitions: places, processes and politics of socio-technical change. Urban studies, 51(7), pp.1353-1377.
Wolfram, M., 2018. Urban planning and transition management: Rationalities, instruments and dialectics. Co-creating sustainable urban futures: A primer on applying transition management in cities, pp.103-125.
| Keywords | path contingency, social justice, transition management, STS approaches |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | No |
