Collaborative Research: Emerging Engagements of Energy Democracy

2017年9月20日，飓风玛丽亚在美国领土波多黎各登陆。五级飓风切断了岛上老化的化石燃料电网，暴露了波多黎各能源系统在持续的经济危机、能源转型、自然灾害和气候变化背景下的缺陷。因此，波多黎各正处于能源的十字路口：要么继续依赖进口化石燃料的现状，要么向太阳能等可再生能源过渡。这个项目的目标是分析波多黎各灾后的能源转型，作为一个案例研究，以了解人们就能源民主进行沟通的方式。能源民主是一项社会运动，旨在尽可能民主地做出有关能源技术的决定。该项目收集了以下数据：在波多黎各的实地调查、与波多黎各能源决策相关利益相关者的访谈和焦点小组，以及报道和影响能源转型与民主传播的波多黎各媒体（电视、广播和印刷品）。分析不同群体如何沟通和证明波多黎各未来能源系统的竞争愿景，将有助于理解当前和未来在气候变化，自然灾害和其他危机事件中对能源转型的争议。该项目的研究结果将有助于在各种情况下制定更加民主和公正的能源决策。使用定性实地调查和新闻媒体分析方法，本研究将回答研究问题：波多黎各利益相关者（行业，公民，政府官员，活动家，监管机构和科学家）使用的沟通形式是什么，以描述和证明与民主有关的能源转型？该项目将有助于新兴领域的科学、技术和社会（STS）对能源民主的研究。司法-参与-权力-技术（JPPT）框架解释了能源民主如何在每个特定背景下依赖于这四个要素的交集。本研究检验了JPPT框架在波多黎各灾后能源转型案例中的适用性。此外，该项目还支持研究人员正在进行的研究能源转型与民主之间的关系的努力；波多黎各不断发展的能源系统；以及对能源技术实施的社会、政治和文化影响。研究结果可以应用于与类似地缘政治背景下的利益相关者在设计民主、文化适宜和公平的能源系统方面的其他能源技术争议。通过与波多黎各的能源民主实践者合作，该项目包括举办社区讲习班，为基层能源组织开展研究，并制定促进能源民主的研究最佳做法。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

On September 20, 2017, Hurricane Maria made landfall on the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. The category five hurricane disconnected the island’s aging fossil fuel-based electricity grid and uncovered the shortcomings of Puerto Rico’s energy system in the context of ongoing economic crisis, energy transition, natural disasters, and climate change. As a result, Puerto Rico is at an energy crossroads: continue with status quo reliance on imported fossil fuels or make a transition to renewable energies, such as solar. The goal of this project is to analyze the post-disaster energy transition in Puerto Rico as a case study for understanding the ways people communicate about energy democracy. Energy democracy is both a social movement that seeks to make decisions about energy technology as democratic as possible. This project collects data from fieldwork in Puerto Rico, interviews and focus groups with stakeholders involved in energy decision-making in Puerto Rico, and Puerto Rican media sources (TV, radio, and print) that report on and influence communication about energy transition and democracy. Analysis of how different groups of people communicate about and justify competing visions for Puerto Rico’s future energy system will contribute to understanding current and future controversies over energy transition in the midst of the climate change, natural disasters, and other crisis events. The project’s findings will contribute to developing more democratic and just energy decision-making in a range of contexts. Using qualitative fieldwork and news media analysis methods, this research will answer the research question: What are the forms of communication used by stakeholders (industry, citizens, government officials, activists, regulatory bodies, and scientists) in Puerto Rico to describe and justify energy transition in relation to democracy? This project will contribute to the emerging area of Science, Technology, and Society (STS) research on energy democracy. The Justice-Participation-Power-Technology (JPPT) framework developed by the Co-PIs explains how energy democracy relies on the intersections of these four elements in each particular context. This research tests the JPPT framework’s applicability in the case of Puerto Rico’s post-disaster energy transition. Furthermore, the project supports ongoing efforts by researchers to study how energy transitions relate to democracy; Puerto Rico’s evolving energy system; and the social, political, and cultural influences on implementation of energy technologies. Findings can be applied to other energy technology controversies with stakeholders in similar geopolitical contexts towards designing energy systems that are democratic, culturally appropriate, and equitable. Through collaboration with energy democracy practitioners in Puerto Rico, the project includes hosting community workshops, conducting research for grassroots energy organizations, and developing research-informed best practices for promoting energy democracy.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.