Of temporality and plurality: an epistemic and governance agenda for accelerating just transitions for energy access and sustainable development

The complementarity of sustainable energy transitions and energy access provision are one of the key characteristics of both the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate change. In this perspective piece, we offer an epistemic and governance agenda to advance the imperative of speed in meeting both ambitions and to acknowledge the plurality of disciplines, actors, and institutions involved. Recognizing that the processes required to achieve these global goals entail navigating tensions, we suggest that shifts in ways knowledge is produced and transitions are governed could be based on a justice framework

Towards codes of practice for navigating the academic peer review process

Peer review is the bedrock of modern academic research and its lasting contributions to science and society. And yet, reviewers can submit “poor” peer review reports, authors can blatantly ignore referee advice, and editors can contravene and undermine the peer review process itself. In this paper, we, the Editors of Energy Research & Social Science (ER&SS), seek to establish peer review codes of practice for the general energy and social science research community. We include suggestions for three of the most important roles: peer reviewers or referees, editors, and authors. We base our 33 recommendations on a collective 60 years of editorial experience at ER&SS. Our hope is that such codes of practice can enable the academic community to navigate the peer review process more effectively, more meaningfully, and more efficiently

Can Energy Democracy Thrive in a Non-democracy?

This paper argues that energy democracy could manifest in terms of public engagement at the community level, free of state intervention, government fostering, and donor support, even in locations where governments have been in flux from a democracy to a non-democracy. In currently non-democratic Thailand, for example, public engagement on community energy transitions had occurred, were sustained, and proved to be durable over time. The spaces of deliberation, created and nurtured by Thai citizens in this community, had become effective sites for navigating and negotiating the ebbs and flows of democratically organized sociotechnical energy transitions. This paper further argues that these spaces for public engagement had revealed that energy democracy is collective, cultural, consequential, co-produced, co-existent, and critical phenomenon that can be used to shore up an energy democracy framework

Governing Climate Change in Southeast Asia: Critical Perspectives

This volume showcases the diversity of the politics and practices of climate change governance across Southeast Asia. Through a series of country-level case studies and regional perspectives, the authors in this volume explore the complexities and contested nature of climate governance in what can be considered as one of the most dynamic and multi-faceted regions of the world. They reflect upon the tensions between authoritarian and democratic climate change governance, the multiple roles of civil society and non-state interventions, and the conflicts between state planning and market-driven climate change governance. Shedding light on climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts in Southeast Asia, this book presents the various formal and informal institutions of climate change governance, their relevant actors, procedures, and policies. Empirical findings from a diverse set of environments are merged into a cross-country comparison that allows for elaborating on similar patterns whilst at the same time highlighting the distinct features of climate change governance in Southeast Asia. Drawing on case studies from all Southeast Asian countries, namely Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Viet Nam, this book will be of great interest to students, scholars, and practitioners dealing with climate change and environmental governance

A dataset on two decades of Japan's energy investments in Southeast Asian countries, 2000–2020

Between 2000 and 2020, Japan played a crucial role in transforming Southeast Asia's energy sector, contributing significantly to local, national, and regional development. This period saw substantial Japanese investments in various energy sources, including renewable energy initiatives and continued use of fossil fuels, while emphasising capacity development. Our research involved an extensive and systematic inventory of secondary resources, with meticulous validation and fact-checking of critical project data. The resulting dataset provides funding amounts and details channelled through Japanese government-backed institutions and private corporations. This dataset could enhance our understanding of Japan-supported energy infrastructure and soft-skill capacity-building projects, allowing us to analyse further how these investments were aligned with the broader economic and sustainability objectives of Southeast Asian countries. Covering investment types, funding sources, and project locations, this valuable resource is useful for scholars across disciplines. Asian studies researchers can gain insights into Japan's strategic involvement in the region, while energy studies specialists can gain a nuanced understanding of the evolving energy finance landscape. Energy policy experts can also use this data to analyse the implications of Japan's contributions to Southeast Asia's energy transition