Building Energy Efficiency - Policy, learning and technology change

Experience shows that energy efficiency improvements are the most cost-effective path to meeting global energy challenges. To promote energy efficiency, various policy instruments have been in place since the 1970s. Nevertheless, energy efficiency improvements still lag behind their potential in the building sector, which indicates that there is a lack of knowledge about the performance of policies. To further encourage energy efficiency in buildings, there is a need for ‘policy learning’ to gain knowledge and experience about polices and their performance. This doctoral thesis analyses the role of policy instruments and policy packages in the development of energy efficient end-use building technologies and their emerging markets. Technologies include windows, insulation, heat pumps and passive houses. By using the lenses of innovation theory, the concept of learning, and transaction cost economics, this work analyses the outcome of various policy packages, the development of technologies and markets, and policies influencing such development. The research identifies key policy instruments for technology change. The results show that technology change requires timely, long-term and flexible policy support. This involves diverse policy packages, rather than single policy instruments, designed to support technology development and their emerging markets. The research also highlights the importance of policy support for learning processes in the innovation system and as a determinant of technology change. Building codes, technology procurement and voluntary standards were found to be essential drivers for introducing energy efficient technologies to the market. Beside regulatory and voluntary building standards, testing facilities and networking activities have been identified as key drivers for technology change. Transaction costs, on the other hand, can significantly hinder energy efficiency improvements. Transaction costs of single technologies implemented in passive house renovations can be 200% higher than the transaction costs of conventional technologies. These costs, however, can be reduced. New approaches to transaction cost reduction and flexible, long-term, policy packages have resulted in more energy efficient windows, improved insulation, widespread use of high quality ground-source heat pumps and growing demand for the application of passive technologies and the passive house concept. In Sweden, for example, the thermal performance of the best available windows has improved more than two-fold in the past forty years. In the same period, the market share of energy efficient windows increased from 20% to 80%. Another example of successful policy interventions is the emergence of markets for ground-source heat pumps in Sweden and Switzerland. Since the mid-1990s, the efficiency of ground-source heat pumps has improved by 13-36%, annual sales have increased around 20-30% and costs decreased between 50% and 80%, in Sweden and Switzerland, respectively. As the case of a Swedish passive house-oriented renovation shows new approaches to promote learning, e.g. enhanced organizational awareness-raising and new forms of collaboration and information platforms, ultimately result in significant cost reductions at different actors’ stake. This thesis delivers important inputs to the field of policy learning that can be used to enhance, reshape and improve future policies for the development and diffusion of building-sector energy efficiency technologies. Enhanced policy learning, in turn, will help overcome barriers to energy efficiency to support innovation and facilitate technology change for sustainable energy use

Energy Efficient Window Development

The paper investigates the development of energy efficient windows in the past 30 years. The focus is on the development and interlinkages among technology, actors´ interaction and market diffusion in a broader policy context. The paper shows that in singular development cycles, different factors and the interfaces among these factors influenced the improvement and penetration of energy efficient window technologies. Such factors includes a) surrounding factors, such as climate characteristics, oil crisis and international concerns and strategies, b) policy instruments, like building codes and technology procurement programs, as well as c) industry initiatives, including niche market strategies

Application of a High Cell Density Capacitance Sensor to Different Microorganisms

In microbial cultivations there is a great need for online biomass determination, especially in such cases, where classical methods have limitations. Capacitance-based sensors are developed and widely used in stem cell and other cell cultures [1, 2].In the present study we have tried to apply such a capacitance-based online biomass determination (Incyte, Hamilton AG) for many microorganisms of different types. Since the signal of this sensor is dependent on the polarizability of the measured cells, the applicability of the sensor should be checked for every species. Thus, we developed a method as a preliminary sensor application test which is faster and simpler than testing this sensor directly in real cultivations.We have tested an Incyte sensor with prokaryotic species (Lactobacillus sp., Clostridium) and eucaryotic strains (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Cryptococcus albidus, Rhizopus oryzae, Chlorella vulgaris, Nannochloropsis oculata). Furthermore, according to our best knowledge this is the first report of a capacitance sensor application for microalgae. Finally, via conductivity measurements of the same sensor, we could even follow product formation in some cases too

Taking Action for Urban Nature: Innovation Pathways Directory

What are the enabling conditions and driving forces for nature-based solutions in the context of urban sustainability transitions? And how do innovation pathways play a role for nature-based solutions? Innovation pathways are a journey: from the initial idea and its demonstration, to its broader uptake within policy, industry and society. The Innovation Pathways Directory provides an entry point to explore and better understand innovation pathways for nature-based solutions. It presents 12 examples of nature-based solutions, and illustrates the findings through: four targets (happy and healthy cities, water friendly cities, renaturing cities, and resilient and thriving cities); three processes (crisis to connectivity, marginal to mainstream, government to governance); and four actions (leading & visioning, governing & collaborating, experimenting & learning, and mobilising & financing)

Exploring transaction costs in passive house-oriented retrofitting

In order to tap the energy saving and climate mitigation potential of the building sector, transaction costs of implementing energy efficient technologies need to be better understood and ultimately reduced. The objective of this paper is to identify and analyze the nature and scale of transaction costs resulting from the application of the passive house concept in energy efficient renovations. Related conceptual choices are also discussed. Our study explores measures to promote learning and knowledge development as potential strategies to reduce transaction costs. It focuses on transaction costs borne by building owners and building developers in the planning and implementation phases of a passive house-oriented renovation in Sweden. Results reveal three main sources of transaction costs: due diligence, negotiations and monitoring. The analysis shows that transaction costs are non-negligible, and for individual cost sources the scale can be 200% higher than for conventional renovations. To reduce transaction costs, various strategies such as study visits, demonstration projects, new forms of meetings and new channels of (written) information were found

A cigánykutatások kritikája

Recenzió: Dupcsik Csaba: A magyarországi cigányság története, Osiris Kiadó, 2009

A téli krízisidőszak vizsgálata az alapvető jogok biztosának gyakorlatában

Az alapvető jogok biztosa 2011 óta minden télen átfogó vizsgálatot folytat annak érdekében, hogy feltérképezze a magyarországi hajléktalanellátó rendszer számára problémát jelentő ellátási kérdéseket, valamint a nyilvánosság számára is elérhetővé tegye a kialakult jó intézményi gyakorlatokat. A legutolsó vizsgálat során az ombudsman kiemelt figyelmet fordított a speciális szükségletű hajléktalan személyek ellátásával kapcsolatos tennivalókra, és rámutatott arra, hogy az idősödő, rossz egészségügyi állapotuk miatt fokozott ápolási szükséglettel élő hajléktalanok egyénre szabott ellátásához az elérhető szolgáltatások, gondozási struktúrák változására is szükség van

A mentálhigiénés segítő munka szerepe a rossz egészségi állapotú hajléktalan személyek körében

A tanulmányban a rossz egészségi állapotuk miatt egy speciális hajléktalanellátó intézményben tartózkodó hajléktalan férfiakkal folytatott mentálhigiénés segítő munka tapasztalatait kívánom bemutatni. A hajléktalanokkal foglalkozó szociális szakemberek nagy segítséget nyújtanak az ilyen kliensek számára a továbbgondozási munka során, azonban a betegségük és a kiszolgáltatottságuk miatt többszörösen sérülékeny hajléktalanoknak az egyéni segítő beszélgetés vagy a támogató csoportok is olyan erőforrást jelenthetnek, amelyek előmozdíthatják a felépülésüket és a reintegrációjukat. A mentálhigiénés segítő szakemberek a munkájuk során a klienskapcsolatban kialakított és fenntartott, feltétel nélküli elfogadással, és különösen a rogersi nondirektív módszer alkalmazásával nagyban hozzájárulhatnak a hajléktalanokkal végzett szociális munka eredményességéhez

A kisebbség és a többség konfliktusa és a mindenkori rendészeti szervek reakciója

Eltérő értékrendet és szokásokat képviselőt csoportok találkozása esetén szinte törvényszerű, hogy olyan feszültségek keletkeznek, amelyeket a mindenkori kormányzat nehezen tud elsimítani. A konszolidációhoz sokszor generációváltásra van szükség, de előfordulhat az is, hogy a jogalkotó évszázadokon keresztül értetlenül áll a zavart keltő jelenség előtt, és nem tud túllépni elődei kodifikációs hibáin, mulasztásain