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Mobilising community action towards a low-carbon future: Opportunities and challenges for local government in the UK

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  • Peters, Michael
  • Fudge, Shane
  • Sinclair, Philip

Abstract

Over the last decade the important role that local authorities can play in catalyzing community action on climate change has been repeatedly emphasised by the UK Government. The paper examines this policy context and explores the options available to local authorities in terms of reaching and engaging their communities. The type of progressive response shown by some UK local authorities is illustrated with empirical evidence gathered through a study conducted in the London Borough of Islington focusing on their recently established 'Green Living Centre'. The results confirm interest in this major council-led community initiative, with positive attitudes expressed by the majority of those questioned in terms of the advice and information available. However, it is also clear that many participants had preexisting pro-environmental attitudes and behavioural routines. Results from a broader sample of Islington residents indicate a substantial challenge in reaching the wider community, where enthusiasm for sustainability change and interest in this type of scheme were more mixed. The prospect for local government in addressing this challenge - and their ability to trigger and capitalize upon concepts of social change at the community level towards a lower carbon future - is discussed in the final part of the paper.

Suggested Citation

  • Peters, Michael & Fudge, Shane & Sinclair, Philip, 2010. "Mobilising community action towards a low-carbon future: Opportunities and challenges for local government in the UK," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 7596-7603, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:38:y:2010:i:12:p:7596-7603
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    Cited by:

    1. Chelsea Schelly & Aparajita Banerjee, 2016. "Soft Energy Paths Revisited: Politics and Practice in Energy Technology Transitions," Challenges, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-10, October.
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    6. Dalia Streimikiene & Tomas Baležentis & Artiom Volkov & Mangirdas Morkūnas & Agnė Žičkienė & Justas Streimikis, 2021. "Barriers and Drivers of Renewable Energy Penetration in Rural Areas," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-28, October.
    7. Azalia Mohamed & Zelina Zaiton Ibrahim & Abu Daud Silong & Ramdzani Abdullah, 2016. "Distributed Leadership in a Low-Carbon City Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(8), pages 1-21, July.
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    10. Muhammad Umar Bello & David Martin @ Daud Juanil & Rozilah Kasim & Muhammad Najib Razali & Yunos Ngadiman & Talib Bon, 2018. "Evidence of Municipal Awareness as a Construct for Enhancing Citizen Satisfaction in Municipal Council of Malaysia," Traektoriâ Nauki = Path of Science, Altezoro, s.r.o. & Dialog, vol. 4(2), pages 1001-1012, February.
    11. Youhyun Lee & Bomi Kim & Heeju Hwang, 2020. "Which Institutional Conditions Lead to a Successful Local Energy Transition? Applying Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis to Solar PV Cases in South Korea," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-19, July.
    12. Chiu, Mei-Shiu, 2013. "Tensions in implementing the “energy-conservation/carbon-reduction” policy in Taiwanese culture," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 415-425.
    13. Christoforidis, Georgios C. & Chatzisavvas, Konstantinos Ch. & Lazarou, Stavros & Parisses, Costantinos, 2013. "Covenant of Mayors initiative—Public perception issues and barriers in Greece," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 643-655.
    14. Zhao, Dong-Xue & He, Bao-Jie & Johnson, Christine & Mou, Ben, 2015. "Social problems of green buildings: From the humanistic needs to social acceptance," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1594-1609.
    15. Gormally, A.M. & Whyatt, J.D. & Timmis, R.J. & Pooley, C.G., 2012. "A regional-scale assessment of local renewable energy resources in Cumbria, UK," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 283-293.
    16. Beau Warbroek & Thomas Hoppe, 2017. "Modes of Governing and Policy of Local and Regional Governments Supporting Local Low-Carbon Energy Initiatives; Exploring the Cases of the Dutch Regions of Overijssel and Fryslân," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-36, January.
    17. Emily Creamer & Simon Allen & Claire Haggett, 2019. "‘Incomers’ leading ‘community-led’ sustainability initiatives: A contradiction in terms?," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 37(5), pages 946-964, August.
    18. Li, Fujia & Dong, Suocheng & Li, Zehong & Li, Yu & Li, Shantong & Wan, Yongkun, 2012. "The improvement of CO2 emission reduction policies based on system dynamics method in traditional industrial region with large CO2 emission," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 683-695.
    19. Robert Shaw, 2014. "Streetlighting in England and Wales: New Technologies and Uncertainty in the Assemblage of Streetlighting Infrastructure," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 46(9), pages 2228-2242, September.
    20. Yadoo, Annabel & Gormally, Alexandra & Cruickshank, Heather, 2011. "Low-carbon off-grid electrification for rural areas in the United Kingdom: Lessons from the developing world," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 6400-6407, October.
    21. Mardones D., Cristián, 2019. "Short- and long-term ex post evaluation of community-based environmental initiatives in Chile," Revista CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), August.
    22. Nick Eyre, 2013. "Decentralization of governance in the low-carbon transition," Chapters, in: Roger Fouquet (ed.), Handbook on Energy and Climate Change, chapter 27, pages 581-597, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    23. Hana Kim, 2017. "A Community Energy Transition Model for Urban Areas: The Energy Self-Reliant Village Program in Seoul, South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(7), pages 1-18, July.
    24. Jennifer C Rogers & Eunice A Simmons & Ian Convery & Andrew Weatherall, 2012. "What factors enable community leadership of renewable energy projects? Lessons from a woodfuel heating initiative," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 27(2), pages 209-222, March.

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