Public perception of and engagement with emerging low-carbon energy technologies: A literature review
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MRS Energy & Sustainability: A Review Journal page 1 of 14 doi:10.1557/mre.2015.12
REVIEW Public perception of and engagement with emerging low-carbon energy technologies: A literature review
Tarla Rai Peterson, Department of Communication, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968 Jennie C. Stephens, Rubenstein School of Environmental & Natural Resources, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405 Elizabeth J. Wilson, Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455 Address all correspondence to Elizabeth J. Wilson at [email protected] All authors contributed equally to this paper. (Received 13 June 2015; accepted 31 July 2015)
ABSTRACT Transitioning to low-carbon energy systems depends on fundamental changes in technologies, policies, and institutions. In Western democracies, public perceptions and engagement with energy have encouraged innovation while also slowing deployment of low-carbon energy technologies (LCETs). Transitioning to low-carbon energy systems requires re-engineering technologies and changing the ways people interact with energy. This shift involves both technological and social changes including modifications in policies and institutional configurations. In Western democracies, public perceptions and engagement with energy have encouraged innovation while also slowing deployment of low-carbon energy technologies (LCETs). To aid understanding of how energy systems are evolving toward lower-carbon technologies in Western democracies, this study reviews the literature on public perception of and engagement with emerging LCETs. Focusing primarily on electricity generating technologies, we explore how multiple factors related to place and process shape public perceptions of and engagement with LCETs, thereby influencing their development and deployment. This study first reviews literature related to how place and process influence emerging LCETs and then provides a comparative example of differential development of wind energy in Texas and Massachusetts (USA) to demonstrate how place and process may interact to influence the patterns of LCET deployment. Keywords: education; environment; society; economics
DISCUSSION POINTS • In Western democracies, the policy and institutional changes required to support commercial scale deployment of low-carbon energy technologies (LCETs) require public support. • Careful examination of both place (where the project is located) and process (how the public engages with development and siting) provides opportunities for understanding the complex social contexts shaping future energy systems.
Introduction “Where you stand depends on where you sit,” “Miles Law” from Rufus Miles, Truman era Civil Servant1 Transitioning to low-carbon energy systems depends on fundamental changes in technologies, policies, and institutions.2,3
In Western democracies, policy and institutional changes require support from both individuals and communities. Public perceptions of and engagement with emerging LCETs are influenced by many factors
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