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This paper analyzes a ten-year long technology debate, which dealt with the so-called advanced electricity meters in Norway (1998–2008). The debate circled around one central question: should the implementation of this technology be forced through with regulations or should the market decide on pace and character of implementation? In 2008 it was decided that it was best to regulate the implementation...
The Belgian Science Policy (BELSPO) Forum project aimed to decide what kind of model-based decision support is needed to develop policy making for the transition to a low carbon economy. Starting from decision-support experiences gained in two decision-support methodologies using bottom-up energy models (TIMES-TUMATIM and SEPIA-LEAP), and inspired by Stanford's Energy Modeling Forum (EMF), six intermediaries,...
This paper highlights how the Sino-character system, because it lacks a plural form, hinders promulgating and popularizing the concept of plural and diverse futures in Korea, Greater China, and Japan. Difficulties are revealed when East Asian futurists emphasize the plural concept of ‘future+s’, because the linguistic conventions of Sino-character languages and cultures do not clearly express plurality...
We develop an analytical framework that allows to grasp the evolving patterns of rules and roles in rural transitions, and the concomitant changes in the functions of expertise. Institutional change is understood as governed by a combination of path dependence, interdependence and goal dependence. We illustrate and develop the framework by means of an in-depth analysis of rural transition in the Khorezm...
The current ascendancy of transdisciplinarity (TD) is marked by an exponential growth of publications, a widening array of contexts, and increased interest across academic, public and private sectors. This investigation traces historical trends, rhetorical claims, and social formations that have shaped three major discourses of TD: transcendence, problem solving, and transgression. In doing so, it...
The response of firms to sustainable development issues needs to pass through a deep re-thinking of the strategic design, encompassing the entire organization, its functions and re-shaping its business model.This contribution proposes a frame of reference for SD oriented organizations, based on three cornerstones: principles, processes and outcomes. Based on an abductive research approach, an analysis...
Under what sets of conditions ought humanity undertake actions to reduce the risk of human extinction? Though many agree that the risk of human extinction is high and intolerable, there is little research into the actions society ought to undertake if one or more methods for estimating human extinction risk indicate that the acceptable threshold is exceeded. In addition to presenting a set of patterns...
This paper assesses the possible roles of biosolar energy systems in the Netherlands in the coming years. The appraisal is made in the light of EU Directives on renewable energy and reduction of CO 2 emissions, and the new Dutch Energy Agreement for Sustainable Growth. The assessment is made within the Dutch BioSolar Cells (BSCs) research programme on photosynthesis and its application in...
This study analyses whether science–policy interactions linked to the management of hazardous chemicals in the European marine environment have developed in accordance with general theories on public involvement in policymaking in general and post-normal science (PNS) in particular. Special attention is given to a comparison between key EU policy frameworks, namely the “polluter-oriented” registration,...
Hydrogen remains an important option for long-term decarbonisation of energy and transport systems. However, studying the possible transition paths and development prospects for a hydrogen energy system is challenging. The long-term nature of technological transitions inevitably means profound uncertainties, diverging perspectives and contested priorities. Both modelling approaches and narrative storyline...
The purpose of this paper is to identify and assess the implications of sustainable development for the future orientation of higher education, especially after the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20). A qualitative trend analysis is being used for this purpose, in the context of which three macro trends are combined: (1) higher education that has been developed via...
Green growth, or environmentally sustainable economic growth, is imperative in light of current environmental crises and resource depletion. Green indicators and statistics can measure environmentally sustainable development; they thus enable evaluating green growth and support its integration into policy. As such, this study uses an OECD framework to select a set of 12 indicators, designed for cross-country...
The basic observation that we explore in this paper is simple but, we argue, rich in consequences: societal systems combine two qualities that are commonly referred to as complexity and complicatedness. We address the problem that societal systems remain recalcitrant despite the development of powerful approaches for dealing with both of these qualities. The root of this problem we identify to be...
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