Research Projects

Transforming energy systems will require the increased engagement and involvement of ‘the public’. But, quite how ‘publics’ participate in energy system change has over the last few decades become increasingly diverse. Participation through protests, consolations, opinion polls, maker spaces, living labs, community projects, smart technology trials and so on all contribute to making contemporary energy … Continued

An analysis of reports of how people are engaging in “smart” energy in Bristol, eg through The CHEESE Project, by a group of authors including Aleksandra (Ola) Michalec. Building smart cities, the just way. A critical review of “smart” and “just” initiatives in Bristol, UK  

Community energy groups work incredibly hard to design and deliver projects for their communities. They often have to work in ‘unfavourable’ policy conditions and market contexts. Their role is often sidelined and, at times, ignored. Yet they often perform hugely important work as ‘intermediary organisations’, working between novel technologies, governments, regulations, industry and householders. In … Continued

This article written by 4 authors including Aleksandra Michalec (who gave a presentation at our July BEN Open meeting) and David Tudgey takes the findings of a number of focus groups to conclude that the communication strategy for the installation of water and Smart meters needs to change to meet the needs of customers to … Continued

This 2017 paper by Emilia Melville explores  how energy might be conceptualised as a “commons” – a resource owned and managed by a community with a system of rules for production and consumption, testing one of the design principles for successful management of common pool resources: that there should be community accountability for individual consumption behaviour. … Continued

This article, co-written by Caroline Bird in May 2018, shows how local action can influence policy changes around energy justice and the move to low carbon.   Intermediating energy justice?

This 2018 paper from Jonas Torrens uses the Bristol energy scene as a case study to look at what constitutes a good environment to experiment with different ways to provide urban energy. Unpacking the formation of favourable environments for urban experimentation: the case of the Bristol energy scene

This is a concise working paper written in 2017 by Jake Barnes, which includes using Bristol Green Doors as a case study for how low carbon technologies can be showcased and demonstrated on a local level. User-Intermediaries and the Local Embedding of Low Carbon Technologies

Emilia Melville’s PhD thesis (2107) uses case studies from the South West of England, including Bristol, to look at how local and community organisations can support a sustainable energy transition in Great Britain. It also looks at how theoretical frameworks of commons (commonly owned) and polycentric (multi-stakeholder) governance contribute to understanding these roles. The roles of … Continued

This paper written as by a gaggle of authors in 2017, asks what is the role of civil society in the future sustainability of European cities. It argues that civil society initiatives can pioneer new social relations and practices and act as a hidden innovator. This can be an integral part of urban transformations which may, … Continued