Iain Soutar Energy Policy Group University of Exeter Circular Economy Disruptions Past Present and Future Exeter 19 June 2018 Summary Renewable energy underpins circular economy Sustainable energy transition about more than just RE ID: 801868
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Slide1
Energy system change: insights for the circular economy?
Iain SoutarEnergy Policy Group, University of ExeterCircular Economy Disruptions – Past, Present and FutureExeter, 19 June 2018
Slide2Summary
Renewable energy underpins circular economySustainable energy transition about more than just REEnergy systems themselves are becoming less linear Energy transition trends are aligning system, in part, with CE principlesSome general insights for CE scholarship and governance can be drawnTransitions are often, but not always politicalReflexivity trumps omnisciencePeople matter
Slide3D
ecarbonisationDecentralisationDigitalisationDemocratisation…?More potential for ‘smart' systems of control
More low carbon, intermittent renewables
Change in governing principles
After: Forum for the Future
https://www.forumforthefuture.org/sites/default/files/WiseMinds_FinalReport_0.pdf
New business models accessing new markets
4Ds emerging as new paradigm of energy scholarship & policymaking
Implications for…
Environmental impact
Physical structure
GeographyOperationEconomicsBusiness practicesPolicy & politicsGovernance
Supply closer to consumption
More storage / ability to flex
Value dispersed among nodes
Value dispersed among nodes
Slide4Are the 4Ds about the 3Rs?
Decarbonisation of electricity, heat and mobility reduces C intensity of energyBut decarbonisation in itself may not reduce material intensityComplementarity between techs (RE, storage, ICT) offers potential to use previously ‘wasted’ energyBetter balancing of supply and demand Reduction in conversion and transmission lossesBut, focus is still on supply rather than (reducing) demand - more could be done to use less energy in the first place
Slide5Slide61. Paradigms can shift relatively quickly
In last decade, technical aspects have changedIntermittency fast becoming new normal (Staffell 2017)As have discursive aspectsShift in focus from redundancy to flexibility (Stbrac & Aunedi 2016)Need for ‘whole systems’ approach widely acceptedThe ’local’ is fast becoming key locus of interestFollowed belatedly by policy…UK Industrial Strategy to ‘prosper from the energy revolution’Q. To what degree can the notion of CE emulate the 4Ds?
Slide72. Accelerating the transition?
Economics matter, but so does policy, politics, user preferences – no silver bullet for (energy) transitionsSynergistic advances across innovations can accelerate whole system transitionsTransition generally takes form of punctuated equilibrium rather than exponential growth(Sovacool 2016)Institutional reform, among other things, can help overcome inertia (Cowell et al 2013)E.g. renewables and waste in devolved governmentsQ. How can we take advantage of windows of opportunity to progress the CE?
Slide83. Importance of societal engagement in transformations
Transformation incumbent on involving society with processes of transition Knowledges and practices around sustainability most often shaped by democratic struggle rather than top-down orchestration (Stirling 2014)Energy infrastructure is visible and costly, necessitating ‘meaningful public engagement’ around system change (Roberts 2015)Transdisciplinarity and the importance of narrative – not just about decarbonisationNeed to engage with public interest dimensions (Sustainability First 2018)Q. How does the CE relate to public interest dimensions?
Slide94. Governance within & beyond system boundaries
Local experiments are important, but needActivity across scalesFreedom to innovateAn understanding of transferabilityGoing beyond whole-system approaches to consider dynamics beyond system boundariesWork on the Water-Energy-Food ‘nexus’ speaks directly to CENeed to balancing need for strategic oversight/control with humilityChallenges with single system transitions are amplified when considering multiple systemsAddressing complexity with agilityQ. To what degree should we temper our increasing capacity to understand complex systems with increased humility?
Slide10Thank you!
i.Soutar@Exeter.ac.uk @isoutar
Slide11Bibliography
Cowell R, Ellis G, Sherry-Brennan F, Strachan P & Toke D (2013) Promoting renewable energy in the UK. What difference has devolution made? Available hereSmart Islands Partnership (2018) Smart Islands. Available hereSovacool BK (2016) How long will it take? Conceptualising the temporal dynamics of energy transitions. Energy Research & Social Science 13: 202-215Staffell I (2017). Measuring the progress and impacts of decarbonising British electricity. Energy Policy 102: 463-475.Strbac G & Aunedi M (2016) Whole system cost of variable renewables in future GB electricity system. Imperial College. Sustainability First (2018) Looking to the long-term: hearing the public interest voice in energy and water. Available here