Social Science and the Alternative Energy Future: A Workshop Proposal to the National Science Foundation

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American Academy of Arts and SciencesSocial Science and the Alternative Energy Future: A workshop proposal to the National Science FoundationPROJECT SUMMARYThere is a critical need to identify the legal, social, and economic barriers to the adoption of new energy technologies and to assess how they might be better understood and managed using tools developed by the social sciences. To address this need, the American Academy will convene a workshop on "Social Science and the Alternative Energy Future" on May 19-20, 2011, in Washington, D.C., that will identify priority areas for future social science research and develop recommendations for bridging the gap between the energy and the social science communities. The workshop will bring together social scientists, scientists and engineers, legal scholars, business leaders, and government officials to investigate issues that will benefit from further social science research and to understand how social science expertise can be more effectively applied to the development of energy policy.Intellectual Merit: Previous studies from the National Academies and others have concluded that the energy system must undergo transformational change to ensure an affordable, secure, and sustainable energy system. Transformational change of the existing technological infrastructure will require changes to economic, social, and legal structures as well, yet many of the societal considerations underlying these necessary changes have not been adequately addressed. This workshop will consider four key issues that will require new thinking from social scientists in order to meet the needs of policy-makers, and that have not been adequately addressed by other studies:1. How will the transformation of the energy system affect the decisions made by individuals and communities?2. How do regulations need to change to support new energy technologies?3. What governance framework will help sustain energy policies over the long term?4. What will be the effect of changing the energy system on other physical systems, including ecosystems and natural resources?Broader Impact: The final workshop report will review existing social science research, identify priority areas for future research, and develop recommendations for increasing communication between social scientists and energy policy-makers. By creating new interdisciplinary collaborations between previously-isolated professional communities, this workshop will inform governmental policy development and the research initiatives of nongovernmental organizations, and will increase public awareness of the societal risks and benefits of alternative energy technologies.