Who will be cold this winter? Addressing the complex problem of fuel poverty in England

Although fuel poverty affects a wide variety of households in diverse ways, the government's definition of who is experiencing fuel poverty is too narrow, argues Lucie Middlemiss. She explains why that is, and what other countries can teach us about alternative approaches

How the Labour vote reflects a values-based realignment of the British electorate

Although fuel poverty affects a wide variety of households in diverse ways, the government’s definition of who is experiencing fuel poverty is too narrow, argues Lucie Middlemiss. She explains why that is, and what other countries can teach us about alternative approaches

Humanising the Energy Transition:Towards a National Policy on Energy Poverty in the Netherlands

Energy poverty is emerging as a national agenda in the Netherlands. Local authority leadership and action on this agenda, and European Union reporting requirements around the energy transition have aligned to create an opportunity to establish a national agenda on this issue. Early action on energy poverty by local authorities stemmed from their recognition of the value of addressing environmental, health, social welfare and poverty goals through measures to address the problem. In contrast, the experiences of vulnerable energy consumers have limited recognition in national policy. Meanwhile EU requirements for climate reporting include a specification for measuring and monitoring energy poverty. This growing momentum has resulted in an emerging interest in energy poverty as a means to achieve a just transition at a national level, as reflected in the Dutch National Climate and Energy Plan. In this paper, we profile the case of the Netherlands, and outline the opportunity we see for the development of an energy poverty agenda in national energy transition policy, as part of a multi-level energy governance effort. We report on a national stakeholder workshop that we led, linking the lived experience of energy poverty in the Netherlands with policy solutions. Following the clear call for a national policy in this workshop, we also outline a strategy for engagement with energy poverty in the Netherlands, published recently in a white paper on this topic.</p

Dipping and rinsing dishes: a discussion involving cleanliness and sustainability in Brazilian and English households

This paper compares the way people wash dishes in England and in Brazil to contribute to the discussion of how practices are undertaken in different national contexts and by people with different cultural backgrounds in both places, in order to verify if there are different levels of strength in the elements of practice described by Shove et al. (2012). It is based on twelve oral histories, both from Brazilian residents (three Brazilian locals and two English migrants) and English residents (two Brazilian migrants, one English local, and two cross-national couples). This data examines different social conventions and expectations from multiple perspectives, considering procedures, interplay between partners, expected outcomes and items associated to the practice, to name a few. Different social conventions of what is expected from a practice and the culture play a significant role in this dynamic, allowing us also to think about different strategies that could be employed by companies and governments to promote sustainable behaviours. Overall, the analysis provides an original account of social practices, which offers insights in multiple domains, such as consumer behaviour, marketing, sustainability and governance strategy.This paper compares the way people wash dishes in England and in Brazil to contribute to the discussion of how practices are undertaken in different national contexts and by people with different cultural backgrounds in both places, in order to verify if there are different levels of strength in the elements of practice described by Shove et al. (2012). It is based on twelve oral histories, both from Brazilian residents (three Brazilian locals and two English migrants) and English residents (two Brazilian migrants, one English local, and two cross-national couples). This data examines different social conventions and expectations from multiple perspectives, considering procedures, interplay between partners, expected outcomes and items associated to the practice, to name a few. Different social conventions of what is expected from a practice and the culture play a significant role in this dynamic, allowing us also to think about different strategies that could be employed by companies and governments to promote sustainable behaviours. Overall, the analysis provides an original account of social practices, which offers insights in multiple domains, such as consumer behaviour, marketing, sustainability and governance strategy

Empowering whose future? A European policy analysis of children in energy poverty.

Children experience distinct impacts on their mental and physical health as well as their educational attainment as a result of living in energy poverty, according to multiple sources. International guidelines, such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, underline the right of every child to an adequate standard of living and the need for all policies to consider the specific needs of children. This paper aims to understand the extent to which energy policies take explicit account of children in energy poverty and endeavour to address their distinct needs and the impacts they experience. The investigation is based on an analysis of EU-SILC data and policy documents across the 28 countries that (at the end of 2019) formed the European Union. The analysis reveals that children are mostly only considered within the wider family context, with larger families tending to receive greater support, despite evidence that single-parent families are at higher risk of energy poverty. Children are characterised as passive subjects in energy policy; their perspectives and needs are not considered in policy development