Lessons from energy history for climate policy: Technological change, demand and economic development

Abstract

This paper draws lessons from long run trends in energy markets for energy and climate policy. An important lesson is that consumer responses to energy markets1 The income elasticity of demand for an energy service indicates the percentage change in the consumption of the energy service for a one percent change in income. For example, an income elasticity of 0.5 (or 1.5) implies that, if income rises by 10%, consumption will increase by 5% (or 15%, respectively). Similarly, the price elasticity indicates the percentage change in the consumption of the energy service for a one percent change in the price of the energy service. That is, a price elasticity of -0.5 (or -1.5) implies that, if prices rise by 10%, consumption will fall by 5% (or 15%, respectively).2

Statistical Evidence on the Role of Energy Cooperatives for the Energy Transition in European Countries

“…The transition to low carbon energy systems is on its way in Europe: Most countries are on track to achieving their specific 2020 targets and the share of renewable energy in final energy consumption at the European level has crossed 16% in 2014 [1]. However, there is a debate about how fast this process is going and to what extent it can be further accelerated [2][3][4][5][6]. There are two broad lines of approaching this issue, mainly under the labels of "techno-economic analysis" and the "socio-institutional analysis" [5].…”

How Did We Do That? Histories and Political Economies of Rapid and Just Transitions

“…While there have been some advances in this regard (Baker et al 2014, Geels 2014, Newell and Phillips 2016, Power et al 2016, Johnstone and Newell 2018, and a growing interest in the broader politics of green transformations (Scoones et al 2015), there is plenty of scope for fuller conceptual and historically informed empirical accounts of the political, social and economic, as well as technological, conditions in which large-scale disruptive change in the organisation of societal needs has been possible. This builds on previous histories of transitions which emphasise factors such as the role of prices, science and human capital (Geels 2005, Allen 2012, Fouquet and Pearson 2012, Grubler 2012, Pearson and Foxon 2012, Fouquet 2016a. This speaks to emerging research agendas on the politics of accelerating transitions (Roberts et al 2018).…”

Coping with extremes, creating comfort: User experiences of ‘low-energy’ homes in Australia

“…Householders were asked to speak about each of their homes in succession, starting with childhood and progressing to their current Lochiel Park home. This approach was designed to situate the experiences of the householders within energy transitions [66] and, at a more individual level, housing transitions [67].…”