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Research has shown how the NIMBY explanation for local opposition to energy infrastructures has made its way into the discourses of developers, policy makers, the media and active protesters. However, few studies have explored how community members draw on discourses of NIMBYism to interpret and negotiate responses to local energy proposals. We address this gap drawing on qualitative data from two UK case studies. Analyses show that NIMBY, as a representation of objection, is both widespread and polysemic. Aside from providing a means to talk about space, NIMBY is sometimes rejected by discourses positioning publics as custodians of valued landscapes. In other instances, it is assumed to be a normative and legitimate way for participants to decide what is best for them in a neo-liberal society. The findings reinforce the importance of examining socio-cultural dimensions of social acceptance, specifically representations of community responses to infrastructures as political devices in local siting disputes, and publics as reflexive actors. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion

Governments, namely in the global North, are fostering the deployment of large-scale low carbon and associated energy infrastructures (EIs), such as power lines, to mitigate climate change. However, when infrastructures are to be deployed, opposition is often found. Environmental justice—involving issues of distributive and procedural justice and recognition—and associated inter-group relations, has been identified as a key aspect for local opposition. However, research has rarely examined local perceptions of environmental justice and associated practices, such as energy colonialism, within a global perspective. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, we examine if and how different-level intergroup relations and collective narratives shape people's social-psychological and geographical imaginaries and responses to EIs. Focus groups were conducted with community members affected by proposals to construct high-voltage power lines in the UK. Analyses suggest that narratives around England's colonial history—within Britain and beyond Britain—shape responses to EIs. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion

Recent socio-political events - such as Brexit - have provoked discussion and uncertainties about the future of the European Union, including European sustainable energy transitions. Nevertheless, not much research in the energy and social science domain has discussed and empirically explored how these socio-political events and related processes - rise in right-wing populism, post-truth politics - are shaped by and impact public beliefs about energy issues and the role of changes in people's different-level identities (local, national, European). In this paper, we discuss the importance of further exploring these ideas in energy social science research. We examine results of the Eurobarometer survey in the time span 2007-2016, and of two different representative surveys of United Kingdom adults, conducted in 2007 and 2012. This data allowed us to explore similarities and differences during this period regarding attitudes and beliefs about high voltage power lines and other energy and climate change related issues at different levels, and associated identities. Results suggest that feelings of belonging to different imaginary communities play out socio-political and psychological intergroup relations. We conclude that the ways that these impact on people's responses regarding energy issues at local, national and European levels represent promising directions for future research. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record. ; Understanding the factors influencing community acceptance of renewable energy projects such as offshore wind farms is important for achieving a transition to low carbon energy sources. However, to date community acceptance research has concentrated on responses to actual proposals, seeking to explain local objections. 'Upstream' research that investigates the 'place-technology fit' of a potential renewable energy project before it is proposed is scarce, yet can inform technology deployment by taking local knowledge and preferences into account. We address this gap in a study conducted in Guernsey, Channel Islands. Data was collected using a survey (n = 468) co-designed with island policy makers presenting technical, economic and locational details of a potential offshore wind project. Results show that acceptance of the same project design differed significantly across alternative development locations. Regression analyses compared the roles of personal, context and project-related factors in explaining acceptance for each site. Support for using wind energy for local electricity supply was the most important predictor of acceptance, and this variable mediated the relationship between island energy security and community acceptance. We conclude that place matters for community acceptance and that security and autonomy are co-benefits of local renewable energy projects that deserve further research. ; States of Guernsey Government ; Economic and Social Research Council

This is the final version. Available on open access from Cogitatio via the DOI in this record ; It has been argued that a 'new climate politics' has emerged in recent years, in the wake of global climate change protest movements. One part of the new climate politics entails experimentation with citizen-centric input into policy development, via mechanisms of deliberative democracy such as citizens' assemblies. Yet relatively little is known about the motivations and aspirations of those commissioning climate assemblies or about general public perceptions of these institutions. Addressing these issues is important for increasing understanding of what these deliberative mechanisms represent in the context of climate change, how legitimate, credible and useful they are perceived to be by those involved, and whether they represent a radical way of doing politics differently or a more incremental change. This article addresses these gaps by presenting findings from mixed method research on prior expectations of the Devon Climate Assembly, proposed following the declaration of a climate emergency in 2019. The research compares and contrasts the views of those commissioning and administering the citizens' assembly, with those of the wider public. Findings indicate widespread support, yet also considerable risk and uncertainty associated with holding the assembly. Enabling input into policy of a broad array of public voices was seen as necessary for effective climate response, yet there was scepticism about the practical challenges involved in ensuring citizen representation, and about whether politicians, and society more generally, would embrace the 'hard choices' required. The assembly was diversely represented as a means to unlock structural change, and as an instrumental tool to achieve behaviour change at scale. The Devon Climate Assembly appears to indicate 'cautious experimentation' where democratic innovation is widely embraced yet carefully constrained, offering only a modest example of a 'new climate politics,' with minimal challenges to the authority of existing institutions. ; Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) ; Devon County Council

The aim of this study was to explore everyday thinking about the UK electricity network, in light of government policy to increase the generation of electricity from renewable energy sources. Existing literature on public perceptions of electricity network technologies was broadened by adopting a more socially embedded conception of the construction of knowledge using the theory of social representations (SRT) to explore symbolic associations with network technologies. Drawing and association tasks were administered within nine discussion groups held in two places: a Scottish town where significant upgrades to the local transmission network were planned and an English city with no such plans. Our results illustrate the ways in which network technologies, such as high voltage (HV) pylons, are objectified in talk and drawings. These invoked positive as well as negative symbolic and affective associations, both at the level of specific pylons, and the 'National Grid' as a whole and are anchored in understanding of other networks such as mobile telecommunications. We conclude that visual methods are especially useful for exploring beliefs about technologies that are widespread, proximal to our everyday experience but nevertheless unfamiliar topics of everyday conversation.

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this record ; Data availability statement The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. ; Despite growing interest in issues of residential mobility and place attachment in a globalised world, research within Environmental and Community psychology has tended to overlook the ways that interpersonal relations, and wider socio-political and economic structural factors inform place attachment formation amongst residentially mobile individuals. We address this gap drawing on the Human Geography concept of 'Linked Lives' (Coulter et al., Progress in Human Geography, 2016, 40(3), 352–374), to conceive the relocation decisions of residentially mobile individuals, and their place (non)attachment to the current residence place, as deeply intertwined with formative place experiences, interpersonal relations, and the structural contexts within which people live (Coulter et al., Progress in Human Geography, 2016, 40(3), 352–374). With the aim of deepening understanding of the co-evolution of residential mobility and place attachment, this paper presents narrative case studies of residents living in a town in Southwest England, with each resident indicating a different variety of people–place relations to their current residence place. Findings indicate that moving intentions and consequent residential place attachment result from complex interactions over time between (a) formative place experiences and settlement identities, leading to preferred types of residence place; (b) interpersonal relations with significant others including family and community members that vary according to life stage events; and (c) structural forces, comprising cultural, economic, and political factors shaping people's lives. Future research could examine how structural changes arising from the COVID-19 pandemic are influencing residential mobilities and attachments to place. ; Portuguese Science Foundation (FCT) ; Norwegian Research Council ; Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record ; In this Perspective we argue that how we imagine energy futures is inevitably entwined with how we envision our collective social and geographical futures. Spatiality is both constituted by and constitutive of sociotechnical imaginaries (STIs), as they encode specific imaginations of socio-spatial order. Going beyond recognising spatial differences, we formalise an assertively spatial perspective on STIs by drawing on the concept of spatial imaginaries. We show how holding that STIs and spatial imaginaries are co-produced is a productive way of conceptualising the spatial dimensions of STIs. Drawing on three types of spatial imaginary (place imaginaries, idealised spaces and spatial transformations imaginaries), we delineate two main lines of inquiry. First, we elaborate the spatialities underpinning energy transition imaginaries, identifying ways that each particular type of spatial imaginary, both separately and interconnectedly, shape energy transitions. Second, we address the politics of space and scale involved in the circulation and uptake of energy transition imaginaries, which is shaped by existing power relations, socio-spatial inequalities and the differentiated material and symbolic resources available to actors. We argue that this agenda contributes to richer understandings of how energy transitions unfold and offers further insights into how spatial concepts are actively mobilised within processes of social change. ; European Union Horizon 2020

Despite growing interest in issues of residential mobility and place attachment in a globalised world, research within Environmental and Community psychology has tended to overlook the ways that interpersonal relations, and wider socio-political and economic structural factors inform place attachment formation amongst residentially mobile individuals. We address this gap drawing on the Human Geography concept of 'Linked Lives' (Coulter et al., Progress in Human Geography, 2016, 40(3), 352–374), to conceive the relocation decisions of residentially mobile individuals, and their place (non)attachment to the current residence place, as deeply intertwined with formative place experiences, interpersonal relations, and the structural contexts within which people live (Coulter et al., Progress in Human Geography, 2016, 40(3), 352–374). With the aim of deepening understanding of the co-evolution of residential mobility and place attachment, this paper presents narrative case studies of residents living in a town in Southwest England, with each resident indicating a different variety of people–place relations to their current residence place. Findings indicate that moving intentions and consequent residential place attachment result from complex interactions over time between (a) formative place experiences and settlement identities, leading to preferred types of residence place; (b) interpersonal relations with significant others including family and community members that vary according to life stage events; and (c) structural forces, comprising cultural, economic, and political factors shaping people's lives. Future research could examine how structural changes arising from the COVID-19 pandemic are influencing residential mobilities and attachments to place. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this record ; Providing heat is a key aspect of social life and a necessity for comfort and health in cold climates. Even though heat accounts for a large proportion of worldwide carbon emissions and is the largest energy end-use, it has remained largely untouched by efforts to decarbonize. Efforts to do so meet significant economic, social-psychological, technical and political challenges. Much is at stake. But what can make a difference? One increasingly discussed potential solution is co-creation. It provides spaces for citizens to share what heating means to them and for stakeholders to build these insights into their programmes for change. However, while local authorities, grassroots, and community organisations are already implementing co-creation with homeowners and groups of citizens, there is a dearth of academic research focusing on the value of co-creating sustainable heating transitions. This indicates a lack of evidence on how these new forms of collaboration perform under which conditions and how they are embedded in the policy cycle. Drawing on European sustainable heating case studies where co-creation has been applied, we outline future areas where critical, engaged research could help us to understand how to unlock sustainable heating transitions. ; European Commission ; Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy

As countries worldwide, and particularly in Europe, move to increase deployment of low carbon energy sources, significant investments in new transmission networks are planned. However, past cases of public opposition – both to power line siting and large-scale renewable energy projects – indicate the importance of understanding public beliefs and acceptance, and using such knowledge to inform policy making and planning. This study conducted a comparative analysis of public beliefs across three European countries (UK, Norway and Sweden) drawing on representative samples of adults in each context (total n = 5107). Findings show significant differences between countries, notably lower levels of acceptance and trust in the UK, but also similarities, for example that local residents are considered to have little involvement in planning- and decision-making processes. The results indicate two important principles: that acceptance can be empirically distinguished from support, and that general acceptance of energy projects is higher than local acceptance. Potential geographical, socio-historical and political explanations for the results are proposed and future research needs recommended.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record ; To date, little research has investigated how public perceptions of policies to ban or restrict fossil-fuel extraction change over time; yet this topic is of crucial importance as countries worldwide seek to transition towards 'net zero' economies. This study addresses this gap by focusing on public responses to the 2019 moratorium on shale gas extraction in England, using an analytical framework comprising awareness, interpretations and opinions, and a mixed-method approach combining national survey, social media and local case interviews. Findings show high levels of awareness and support for the moratorium, yet differences between coalitions of interest based on ideology, scale and demographics. Social media analyses reveal a peak in public response across several days during a general election campaign in which different parties took divergent positions on shale gas. Public support for the moratorium – and induced seismicity as the primary reason for its introduction - was evidenced by the national survey, yet coincided with scepticism about its timing, extent and motivation, as indicated by social media activity and local case interviews. For some publics, the moratorium was a ploy to ensure electoral support, embedded in public distrust. This study indicates the merits of a mixed-method approach to understand the psychological and institutional context of public responses to policy change as it unfolds over time, and discusses the longer term implications of politicised attitudes for energy transitions. ; Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record ; As governments worldwide address the climate crisis, energy systems are becoming both decarbonised and decentralised. In this study, we aim to increase understanding of the spatial dimensions of new forms of decentralised energy systems that integrate electricity, storage, transportation, and heating. Drawing on workshops and secondary data from three, early-stage case studies funded under a UK government programme, we examine how stakeholders responsible for development construct the 'local' in Smart Local Energy System (SLES) demonstrators. We employ three analytical concepts to address this aim: emplacement, place-framing, and place/boundary-making. In terms of emplacement, stakeholders use place-based narratives that draw on distinctive infrastructural, social, ecological, and political characteristics to argue that diverse locations (Oxford city, Oxfordshire, and the Orkney Islands) are 'suitable' places for decentralised energy. Stakeholders frame projects around non-local goals of creating technological and business models for replication across the UK and worldwide, even if some community-centred benefits are recognized. Lastly, our findings on place-making show pragmatism in flexing 'local' boundaries in order to align with project objectives. The three analytical concepts provide a useful framework to uncover 'local' complexities of early-stage decentralised energy projects, and emphasise intersections of space, place, and justice that deserve further scrutiny, notably in later stages of project implementation. ; Energy Revolution Research Consortium ; Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record ; The Covid-19 pandemic has prompted a reconsideration, perhaps even a fundamental shift in our relationships with place. As people worldwide have experienced 'lockdown,' we find ourselves emplaced in new and complex ways. In this Commentary, we draw attention to the re-working of people-place relations that the pandemic has catalysed thus far. We offer insights and suggestions for future interdisciplinary research, informed by our diverse positionalities as researchers based in different continents employing diverse approaches to people-place research. The article is structured in two sections. First, we consider theoretical aspects of our current relationships to place by proposing a framework of three interdependent axes: emplacement-displacement, inside-outside, and fixity-flow. Second, we identify six implications of these dialectics: for un-making and re-making 'home'; precarity, exclusion and non-normative experiences of place; a new politics of public space; health, wellbeing and access to 'outside' recreational spaces; re-sensing place, virtual escapes and fluid places, and methodological and ethical considerations. Across these topics, we identify 15 key questions to guide future research. We conclude by asserting that learning lessons from the global pandemic is necessarily tentative, requiring careful observation of altered life circumstances, and will be deficient without taking relationships with place into account. ; National Science Center