IGov: Innovation and Governance for Future Energy Systems

Catherine Mitchell的既定职业联谊会(ECF)已经/正在表明，英国的能源治理变化缓慢，包括在需求方面，而且英国正在走一条与其他欧洲国家不同的低碳技术道路，特别是那些最决心实现其低碳目标的国家(即德国和丹麦)。在一些国家和美国，在技术使用、新进入者、商业模式、客户参与和所有权方面，能源系统实践的变化正在更快地发生，这种系统变化似乎正在加速，并变得越来越分散。通过ECF，出现了七个问题，涉及世界各地新参与者改变能源实践的规模、速度和范围。它们是：(1)如上所述，许多其他国家的变化越来越快；(2)尽管能源系统仍然由化石燃料主导，但似乎出现了支持新能源轨迹的社会、技术和经济转折点；(3)变化的本质似乎导致了一个越来越协调但越来越分散的能源系统；以及一些变化似乎有自己的势头--就像一群鸟“成群”或八哥的“低语”。这种变化模式引发了(4)对可能的物理或经济中断的担忧；(5)对未来能源系统性质的问题；(6)不同国家正在采取的变化形式和能源治理对策的类型是否与其不同的政治经济制度有关；(7)担心当前的化石燃料撤资运动将对能源系统产生出人意料的快速影响，并对政府产生影响。奖学金延期(FE)将探讨这些问题及其对英国能源治理的影响。研究、研究和随后传播这些问题，为英国的政策和机构提供信息是至关重要的，因为：(1)政策制定者需要了解全球其他地方正在发生的事情，以了解这里类似变化的潜在影响和机会；(2)由信息和通信技术实现的协调分散似乎是一种规模和性质前所未有的能源系统变化，对基础设施、所有权、商业模式和社会偏好产生快速、巨大的影响，这些影响共同造成的影响并不完全了解或不一定可控；(3)协调分散可能是连接个人的一种成功方式，从而促进更快地转向更智能、更高效、以需求为中心的系统；(4)协调分散的技术路径可能更好地减少干扰的潜在负面影响，或进一步实现对破坏的更好“管理”。这些问题导致了三个阶段的分析：变化的性质；对变化的反应；以及将变化与背景联系起来。这些答案将对GB能源系统的治理产生重要影响，特别是在它如何制定提供更大灵活性、适应性和响应性的政策和机构方面。有限元的关键问题在图解工作计划中有详细说明。还将有两个传播阶段。这在《影响之路》中有详细讨论，由以下部分组成：第一，结论和建议阶段，总结不同受众的主要成果。其次，除了期刊出版等标准的学术目标外，FE的一个主要传播目标将是成为一个网络中心，通过更多的博客、在Twitter上更活跃的存在、致力于发布MOOC、通过网络研讨会、研讨会和更多的国际链接，进一步参与能源系统变化的辩论。

Catherine Mitchell's Established Career Fellowship (ECF) has shown/is showing that GB's energy governance is slow at changing, including with respect to the demand side, and that GB is following a somewhat different low carbon technological path than other European countries, especially those which are most determined to meet their low carbon targets (i.e. Germany and Denmark). Energy system practice change is happening more quickly in some countries and US States with respect to technology use, new entrants, business models, customer engagement and ownership, and this system change appears to be speeding up and becoming increasingly decentralised. Through the ECF, seven issues have emerged about the scale, speed and scope of changes in energy practices by new actors around the world. These are: (1) that there are increasingly rapid changes in many other countries, as explained above; (2) that there appears to be a social, technical, and economic tipping point in favour of a new energy trajectory, even while energy systems remain dominated by fossil fuels; (3) the nature of change appears to be leading to an increasingly co-ordinated but increasingly decentralised energy system; and some changes appears to have their own momentum - like a group of birds 'flocking' or a starling's 'murmuration'. This pattern of change raises (4) concerns about possible disruption, either physical or economic; and whether Britain could 'manage' the transition process; (5) questions about the nature of the future energy system; (6) whether the form that change is taking and the types of energy governance responses in different countries are related to their differing political economy institutions; and finally (7) concerns that the current fossil fuel disinvestment campaign will have an unexpectedly rapid impact on energy systems, with implications for governance.The Fellowship Extension (FE) will explore these issues, and their implications for GB energy governance. Research into, examination of, and subsequent dissemination of these issues to inform British policy and institutions are essential because: (1) policy makers need to know what is happening elsewhere in the globe to understand the potential impacts and opportunities of similar changes here; (2) it seems likely that co-ordinated decentralisation enabled by ICT is a change in energy systems of a scale and nature that is unprecedented, having rapid, large impacts on infrastructure, ownership, business models, and social preferences, and together the impacts from which are not fully understood or necessarily controllable; (3) co-ordinated decentralisation may be a successful way to connect individuals thereby facilitating a quicker move to a smarter, more efficient, demand focused system; (4) technological pathways in co-ordinated decentralisation might better reduce potential negative impacts of disruption or further enable a better 'management' of disruption. These issues lead to three phases of analysis: the nature of change; what are the responses to change; and contextualising change. The answers will have important implications for governance of the GB energy system, especially in relation to how it can develop policies and institutions that provide greater flexibility, adaptability and responsiveness. The key questions of the FE are set out in detail in the Diagrammatic Work-Plan. There would also be two phases of dissemination. This is discussed in detail in the Pathways to Impact and is made up of: firstly, a conclusions and recommendations phase which would summarise key outcomes for different audiences. And secondly, in addition to standard academic aims of journal publication etc, a principal dissemination goal of the FE would be to become a web hub to further engage in debates on energy system change with further blogging, a more active presence on twitter, working towards the publication of a MOOC; with webinars, workshops, and greater international links.