Ryghaug Marianne, Skjølsvold Tomas Moe, Heidenreich Sara
Department of Interdisciplinary Studies of Culture, Centre for Technology and Society, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
Soc Stud Sci. 2018 Apr;48(2):283-303. doi: 10.1177/0306312718770286. Epub 2018 Apr 12.
Transitions towards low-carbon energy systems will be comprehensive and demanding, requiring substantial public support. One important contribution from STS is to highlight the roles of citizens and public engagement. Until recently, energy users have often been treated as customers and passive market actors, or as recipients of technology at the margins of centralized systems. With respect to the latter role, critical or hesitant public action has been explained in terms of NIMBYism and knowledge deficits. This article focuses on the production of energy citizenship when considering public participation in low-carbon energy transitions. We draw upon the theory of 'material participation' to highlight how introducing and using emergent energy technologies may create new energy practices. We analyze an ongoing introduction of new material objects, highlighting the way these technologies can be seen as material interventions co-constructing temporalities of new and sustainable practices. We argue that artefacts such as the electric car, the smart meter and photovoltaic panels may become objects of participation and engagement, and that the introduction of such technologies may foster material participation and energy citizenship. The paper concludes with a discussion about the role of policies for low-carbon energy transitions on the making of energy citizenship, as well as limits of introducing a materially based energy citizenship.
向低碳能源系统的转型将是全面且艰巨的，需要大量的公共支持。科学技术与社会（STS）的一项重要贡献是突出公民的角色和公众参与。直到最近，能源用户通常被视为消费者和被动的市场参与者，或者是集中式系统边缘的技术接受者。关于后一种角色，关键的或犹豫的公众行动一直被用邻避主义和知识缺陷来解释。本文在考虑公众参与低碳能源转型时聚焦于能源公民身份的形成。我们借鉴“物质参与”理论来突出引入和使用新兴能源技术如何可能创造新的能源实践。我们分析正在进行的新材料对象的引入，强调这些技术如何可被视为共同构建新的可持续实践的时间性的物质干预。我们认为电动汽车、智能电表和光伏板等人工制品可能成为参与和互动的对象，并且引入此类技术可能促进物质参与和能源公民身份。本文最后讨论了低碳能源转型政策在能源公民身份形成中的作用，以及引入基于物质的能源公民身份的局限性。
