The Role of Local Governments in Governing Sustainable Consumption and Sharing Cities

Municipalities are key actors in their role as planners for sustainable urban development, and also have the responsibility to transform ambitious national and global goals and visions into local practices (McCormick et al., 2013). The role of municipalities in relation to enhancing sustainable consumption patterns has been increasingly highlighted by policy-makers and in research. Creating sustainable societies and shaping their consumption patterns has become an everyday activity for municipalities. This is also the case for the Nordic countries and not least for Sweden, which will be used as an example in this Chapter. The Nordic countries have the ambition of becoming sustainable leaders and enabling sustainable consumption (Mont et al., 2013)

Assessing ‘Green Energy Economy’ policies for transforming the building stock in Shanghai

The 2008–2009 global financial crisis triggered ‘Green Energy Economy’ (GEE) policy packages to stimulate green growth in many countries. China soon became a leader and, supported by its 11th Five-Year Plan (2006–2010), devoted approximately one-third of its US$ 647 billion stimulus package to green energy technologies. Since then, numerous policy instruments have been implemented to encourage ‘Green Buildings’. We take the Chinese city of Shanghai as a case study as it has the largest population, urbanization ratio and GDP in China and evaluate the performance of GEE policies targeted at the multi-household building sector. We use a bottom-up modelling tool to quantitatively estimate alternative baselines and assess different policy scenarios for the period 2010–2050. We measure the performance of policies in relation to energy use, efficiency improvements, CO2 emissions and net direct economic impacts. Our results suggest that current GEE policies are insufficient to stimulate radical change in the building sector. When unambitious policy measures are implemented in isolation, they provide marginal improvements compared to current building codes. The retrofitting of existing buildings is both a significant policy challenge, and offers fertile ground for improvements. Our results show that ambitious, technology-oriented financial incentives for both new and existing buildings, including energy price reform and a CO2 tax offer the right mix of incentives for green building transformation. When the social costs of climate change are taken into account, an integrated policy mix also delivers the highest net economic benefits. We conclude that policies must be more ambitious and include an integrated mix of instruments in order to drive a low-carbon transformation of both new and existing buildings in Shanghai. Finally, the theoretical impacts and potential benefits of GEE policy instruments must not underestimate the challenges associated with their design, implementation and enforcement

Local governance of greenhouse gas emissions from air travel

Global greenhouse gas emissions from air travel (GHG-A) are on the rise, and projections point towards a rapid growth in the coming decades. This study aims to examine how local government (cities), addresses GHG-A in their Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAP). To fulfil this aim, over 200 SEAPs were analysed focusing on three issues: (1) Treatment of GHG-A in local emissions inventories; (2) Policy initiatives within this domain; and (3) The cities\u27 perceptions of the conflicts of interests. Results showed that more than half of the cities acknowledge the challenge of GHG-A, around one third include GHG-A in their emissions inventories, and more than one quarter have initiated policy interventions. To categorise these interventions, we have added a mode \u27governing by agenda setting\u27 to an existing analytical framework, \u27Modes of governing\u27. With their authority limited to the local setting, this mode of governing is a common channel for cities to push changes at higher levels

Local environmental governance: Assessing proactive initiatives in building energy efficiency

Local governments are increasingly taking the initiative in environmental governance. But can they make any difference in addressing current environmental challenges, which are becoming more and more global in scope? This PhD thesis explores and analyses the outcomes of proactive initiatives in the field of building energy efficiency, and the governance approaches taken. It addresses outcomes both in the socio-technical system that constitutes the building, and in the institutional sphere. The overarching objective is to contribute to knowledge on the role of local initiatives in addressing current environmental challenges. The thesis focuses on a number of governance initiatives in the form of policies or strategic approaches in urban development projects in Sweden, and one in Denmark. The primary focus has been on proactive initiatives for enhancing the energy efficiency of new buildings. Through a case study approach, the research is based on a combination of methods for data collection, including document studies, interviews and participant observation to analyse the governance approaches in local governance initiatives and the different types of outcomes. A key finding is that the local governance initiatives investigated have played a role in environmental governance through outcomes across socio-technical systems and institutional spheres. The combination of different modes of governing, including authoritative and enabling modes of governing as well as governing by provision, was important for fostering the construction of more energy efficient buildings. Another important element in these governing processes was the active governing throughout the development process. In terms of institutional change, it was shown that relation-building and knowledge advancement were fostered successfully, while it was more difficult to actually mobilise for change. The research also showed how local initiatives are shaped by institutions at higher tiers of government and that the local initiatives also contributed to shaping institutions at the national level. Based on this, the thesis argues for national policy frameworks, which better capture the benefits of local frontrunners

Limits to polycentricity? Institutional layering and policy feedbacks of building energy performance requirements in Sweden

Local governments have come to play an increasingly active role in addressing current environmental challenges. In addition to improving the environmental performance of a specific city, such initiatives can potentially spur policy change at other levels of government and thereby contribute to the addressing of global environmental challenges. This type of interplay between local and higher levels of government has been insufficiently addressed by environmental governance research. This study addresses this research gap by looking at the case of regulatory energy performance requirements on buildings in Sweden. Through a case study methodology, the research turns to policy documents and interviews. The research shows how local energy performance requirements on buildings provided tensions that impeded their own longevity but contributed to raising ambitions in national regulation. The research contributes to work on polycentric governance by accounting for the existence of hierarchies through the use of concepts from historical institutionalism. In this regard, the study suggests that governance initiatives are prone to institutional layering that, through policy feedback processes, conditions their impact in terms of reaching overarching policy goals. The research is important as it adds empirical substance to the discussion on the potential and limits of local governments in addressing current environmental challenges

Policy Development in a Non-OECD Context Energy Efficiency Policy for Argentine Buildings

Energy efficiency has gained attention as an important means of ensuring energy supply, fostering countries’ competitiveness and cost-effectively mitigating CO2 emissions. Yet, evaluations of energy efficiency policies are often lacking or insufficient. Moreover, researchers have tended to overlook these types of policies in non-OECD countries, although at this very moment many of these countries are about to introduce them. This study has sought to assess energy efficiency policy design, implementation and results in non-OECD countries–using Argentina as an example. The focus is on PRONUREE, an energy efficiency policy programme introduced in Argentina in 2007, and more specifically on this policy programme’s sections concerning the existing stock of residential buildings. The study relies on a qualitative research approach and interviews with key players within policy-making, business and academia. Based on this, the programme’s output has been assessed. The broader analysis has been complemented by a more detailed assessment of the transparency and administrative burden in the design process. This study’s results indicate that the output of PRONUREE has been rather limited. The only specific outcome regarding building construction and installed systems is the initiation of the development of a voluntary classification scheme for building envelopes. Moreover, transparency was lacking throughout the process, and a heavy burden of negotiation put on policy makers was revealed. The study concludes that the limited output is partly attributable to a lack of transparency and policy makers’ limited resources. Drawing on so-called policy network theory, it is argued that the lack of interaction between private, public and academic players has hampered the programme’s progression. Furthermore, the study highlights the importance of considering (the management of) expectations of actual policy implementation in the study of policy development