Envisioning and doing the energy transition: an investigation of sociotechnical imaginaries and low-carbon policy work in the city of Valencia, Spain

Global efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change rely in part on effective urban plans towards decarbonisation. This type of local low-carbon energy transition covers a crucial role in the definition of municipal policy strategies. Therefore, the study of this requires focusing on the way the future of energy production, distribution and consumption is imagined and fostered at the institutional policy level.In this context, the overarching aim of my thesis is to investigate how low-carbon energy transition policy work takes place at the municipal level by focusing on three specific objectives, namely: 1) whether it is possible to identify a specific municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginary, 2) the investigation of how policy work practices are reproduced through the concept of coalition of carriers, 3) the investigation of how policy workers (carriers) adhere to municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginaries through the concept of teleoaffective formations. Doing so, I made use of qualitative methods such as: collation of publicly available policy documents, semi-structured interviews of policy workers, together with virtual focused participant observation which took place during my on-field data collection in Valencia (Spain).From a theoretical perspective, I made use of two theoretical approaches: sociotechnical imaginaries (SI) and social practice theories (SPT). The concept of sociotechnical imaginaries is inherently connected with the political imagination of municipal policies with regards to energy transition. On the other hand, I directly refer to SPT, specifically with regards to the concepts of coalitions of carriers for the investigation of the reproduction of policy work practice, and teleoaffective formations in an attempt to contribute bridging the two mentioned theoretical approaches.Findings suggest the existence of a municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginary in Valencia (SVm) which includes ideas of energy democracy and right to energy among others. Moreover, this sociotechnical imaginary has evolved throughout the last decade towards a wider consideration of social factors in the energy transition process.The identified imaginary is generally strongly embedded by those policy workers who make part of the identified coalition of carriers (CVm). This coalition of carriers is fostered and kept together by several factors that include a favourable political context and a functional institutional reconfiguration. On the other hand, the coalition could be weakened by other political and organisational factors.The policy workers’ adherence to specific elements of SVm is investigated through the identification of a municipal teleoaffective formation functioning for policy work practices at the municipal level (TVm). In this sense, policy workers as members of the coalition of carriers, showed a general alignment with the identified sociotechnical imaginaries even if some forms of scepticism emerged, for example regarding the implementation of specific related policy measures.</p

Envisioning and doing the energy transition: an investigation of sociotechnical imaginaries and low-carbon policy work in the city of Valencia, Spain

Global efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change rely in part on effective urban plans towards decarbonisation. This type of local low-carbon energy transition covers a crucial role in the definition of municipal policy strategies. Therefore, the study of this requires focusing on the way the future of energy production, distribution and consumption is imagined and fostered at the institutional policy level.In this context, the overarching aim of my thesis is to investigate how low-carbon energy transition policy work takes place at the municipal level by focusing on three specific objectives, namely: 1) whether it is possible to identify a specific municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginary, 2) the investigation of how policy work practices are reproduced through the concept of coalition of carriers, 3) the investigation of how policy workers (carriers) adhere to municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginaries through the concept of teleoaffective formations. Doing so, I made use of qualitative methods such as: collation of publicly available policy documents, semi-structured interviews of policy workers, together with virtual focused participant observation which took place during my on-field data collection in Valencia (Spain).From a theoretical perspective, I made use of two theoretical approaches: sociotechnical imaginaries (SI) and social practice theories (SPT). The concept of sociotechnical imaginaries is inherently connected with the political imagination of municipal policies with regards to energy transition. On the other hand, I directly refer to SPT, specifically with regards to the concepts of coalitions of carriers for the investigation of the reproduction of policy work practice, and teleoaffective formations in an attempt to contribute bridging the two mentioned theoretical approaches.Findings suggest the existence of a municipal energy transition sociotechnical imaginary in Valencia (SVm) which includes ideas of energy democracy and right to energy among others. Moreover, this sociotechnical imaginary has evolved throughout the last decade towards a wider consideration of social factors in the energy transition process.The identified imaginary is generally strongly embedded by those policy workers who make part of the identified coalition of carriers (CVm). This coalition of carriers is fostered and kept together by several factors that include a favourable political context and a functional institutional reconfiguration. On the other hand, the coalition could be weakened by other political and organisational factors.The policy workers’ adherence to specific elements of SVm is investigated through the identification of a municipal teleoaffective formation functioning for policy work practices at the municipal level (TVm). In this sense, policy workers as members of the coalition of carriers, showed a general alignment with the identified sociotechnical imaginaries even if some forms of scepticism emerged, for example regarding the implementation of specific related policy measures.</p