scholarly journals Future Low-Carbon Transport Scenarios: Practice Theory-Based Visioning for Backcasting Studies

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 74
Author(s):  
Rosalie Camilleri ◽  
Maria Attard ◽  
Robin Hickman
Keyword(s):  
Social Practice ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Sustainable Mobility ◽  
Alternative Scenarios ◽  
Business As Usual

Backcasting is a well-established methodology particularly suitable for analyzing complex problems where the business-as-usual projection is no longer appropriate, which can be used to effectively address the challenges of climate change mitigation in transport. It is characterised by designing endpoints in the future and working backward from these visions to establish policy pathways that can achieve desired futures. The visioning phase, which involves the construction of a set of scenarios describing alternative futures, is the first phase in backcasting, and engaging different stakeholders during the visioning phase is considered an important aspect in transport studies. This paper aims to demonstrate the findings from a participatory visioning exercise carried out as part of a backcasting study on sustainable transport in the islands of Malta. It is based on a methodological approach that combines social practice theory with stakeholder workshops. The visioning exercise resulted in the development of four different scenarios: the business-as-usual scenario and three alternative scenarios for transport in 2050 in Malta; High-Tech Mobility (with a focus on clean technology); Local Mobility (with more local travel and reducing the need to travel over longer distances); and Green and Active Mobility (where active forms of travel are prioritised over motorised forms of transport). In the alternative scenarios, the elements of mobility practices and other social practices influencing mobility have been reconfigured to allow for low-carbon travel and significantly reducing GHG emissions. The results of this study demonstrate how insights from a theory of social practices approach can be utilized to provide narratives for future visions in transport backcasting studies, and how this approach could open new possibilities for the transition towards more sustainable mobility through the reconfiguration of mobility and other everyday social practices.

A Tool for Designing Policy Packages To Achieve India’s Climate Targets: Methods, Data, and Reference Scenario of the India Energy Policy Simulator

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deepthi Swamy ◽  
Apurba Mitra ◽  
Varun Agarwal ◽  
Megan Mahajan ◽  
Robbie Orvis
Keyword(s):  
Energy Policy ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The United States ◽  
Technical Note ◽  
Reference Scenario ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Climate Targets ◽  
Effective Manner ◽  
Business As Usual

India is currently the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs) after China and the United States and is set to experience continued growth in its population, economy, and energy consumption. Exploring low-carbon development pathways for India is therefore crucial for achieving the goal of global decarbonization. India has pledged to reduce the emission intensity of its gross domestic product (GDP) by 33–35 per cent relative to 2005 levels by 2030 through its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), among other related targets for the renewable energy and forestry sectors. Further, countries, including India, are expected to respond to the invitation of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Paris Agreement to communicate new or updated NDCs with enhanced ambition and long-term low-GHG development strategies for 2050. To design effective policy packages to support the planning and achievement of such climate targets, policymakers need to identify policies that can reduce GHG emissions in a timely and cost-effective manner, while meeting development-related and other national objectives. The India Energy Policy Simulator (India EPS), an open-source, system dynamics model, can enable an integrated quantitative assessment of different cross-sectoral climate policy packages for India through 2050 and their implications for key variables of interest such as emissions, GDP, and jobs. The tool was developed by Energy Innovation LLC and adapted for India in partnership with World Resources Institute. It is available for open access through a Web interface as well as a downloadable application. This technical note describes the structure, input data sources, assumptions, and limitations of the India EPS, as well as the setup and key results of its reference scenario, referred to as the business-as-usual (BAU) scenario in the model. It is intended as an update to the first technical note on the India EPS (Mangan et al. 2019) and accounts for the changes incorporated into the model since the first version.

Schemaspiele

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Hans Lenk
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Language ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Life Forms ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Modeling Processes ◽  
Language Games ◽  
Special Cases ◽  
Different Levels ◽  
Active Formation

AbstractThe title of “Schema Games” is certainly insinuated by Wittgenstein’s later philosophy of “Language Games” as a social practice and “life forms” and “Gepflogenheiten” (usages), social practices, action forms and mores and institutions. However, in this article Wittgenstein’s conception is extended to forms of not only language usages and actions but also any form of modeling, structuring and scheme activation in cognition and action as well as subconscious, even neuro-physiologically activated networking and modeling processes. Schemes, schematization and scheme activations as well as reactivations are decisive for any stabilization of meanings, opinions, mental episodes as well as actions, social or individual. There is no cognition or action or thinking and speaking without the activation and reactivation of schemes on different levels.Wittgenstein’s approach of a pragmatic and social practice of language games and life forms based on common and repeated usages of special cases of scheme activations and processes of interpretative constructions (interpretative constructs) may also methodologically be analyzed on different levels, even subconscious ones, to grasp or to constitute cognitive and action-like activities. Active formation and usages play a fundamental and pragmatic role, not only according to Kant under his categories but after Wittgenstein and the present methodological approach in a more flexible way - somewhat like Wittgenstein’s “language games” approach. Not only socially based speech forms and actions as well as “life forms” are dependent on active pragmatic scheme interpretations, but also already many basic processes of representing, cognizing, acting, mustering and modeling, even on subconscious neuronal levels. Any cognition and action whatsoever is scheme-dependent, produced by scheme-interpretative activity on user-oriented and a socio-pragmatic, or even institutionalized basis. Not only do language games rely on scheme activations, but they are, methodologically speaking, special cases of these forms of activation. Thus, the parallelism between “language games” and life forms in Wittgenstein’s sense and “schema games” on the basis of methodological scheme-interpretationism seems to be well-founded.

Refined past, current and future greenhouse gas footprints of palm oil production

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Meijide ◽  
Cristina de la Rúa ◽  
Martin Ehbrecht ◽  
Alexander Röll
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Palm Oil ◽  
Oil Palm ◽  
Elaeis Guineensis ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Oil Production ◽  
Plantation Life ◽  
Alternative Scenarios ◽  
Business As Usual

<p>Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is the most important oil crop in the world, with more than 85% of the global production coming from Indonesia and Malaysia. However, knowledge of country-wide past, current and likely future greenhouse gas (GHG) footprints from palm oil production remains largely incomplete. Over the past year, first studies reporting measurements of net ecosystem carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) fluxes in oil palm plantations of different ages and on different soil types became available. Combining the recent CO<sub>2 </sub>flux estimates with existing measurements on methane and nitrous oxide fluxes allows for a refined quantification of the GHG footprint of palm oil production over the whole plantation life cycle.</p><p>To derive country-wide GHG emissions from palm oil production for both Indonesia and Malaysia, we applied the refined GHG footprint estimates to oil palm area extents. Therein, we differentiated between mineral and peat soils, second- and first-generation plantations and within the latter category also among previous land-use systems from which conversion to oil palm likely occurred. For deriving the current (2020) proportions for each category, we combined FAO data with existing remotely sensed maps on oil palm extent and tree density as well as peatland and intact forest layers. These area proportions were then applied to available historic (1970 – 2010) and future (2030 – 2050) oil palm extent estimates as a business-as-usual scenario (BAU), complemented by alternative scenarios. GHG footprint estimates comprise all GHG emissions from palm oil production, i.e. from land-use change, cultivation, milling and use.</p><p>Our refined approach estimates the 2020 GHG emissions from palm oil production at 1011 Tg CO<sub>2</sub>-eq. yr<sup>-1</sup> for Indonesia and at 261 Tg CO<sub>2</sub>-eq. yr<sup>-1</sup> for Malaysia. Our results show that while plantations on peatland only represented 17% and 15% of the total plantation area in 2020 for Indonesia and Malaysia, they accounted for 73% and 72% of the total GHG emissions from palm oil production. Emissions in 1980 and 2000 were estimated to be only 1% and 14% of the 2020 palm oil emissions for Indonesia, but already 24% and 96% for Malaysia due to the earlier oil palm expansion. Projected emissions for 2050, assuming further oil palm expansion on suitable land and constant yields from 2020 on, represent 64% of the 2020 value for Indonesia and 97% for Malaysia under a BAU expansion scenario. These lower or constant GHG emissions for future scenarios despite assumed increases in cultivated area are the consequence of lower GHG emissions in second and subsequent rotation cycles. For both countries, the 2050 BAU emissions could be reduced by more than 50% by halting all conversion of peatlands and forests to oil palm from 2020 on, and by more than 75% when additionally restoring all peatlands currently under oil palm to forest until 2050. Closing yield gaps could potentially lead to further emissions savings.   </p>

scholarly journals Praktik Sosial dalam Arena Derma (Charity) Model Kopi Dindiang di Kota Padang

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-40
Author(s):  
Meri Sutra ◽  
Damsar Damsar ◽  
Azwar Azwar
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Social Problems ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Sampling Techniques ◽  
Social Practice Theory ◽  
Purposive Sampling ◽  
West Sumatra

Charity activities are usually implemented in the form of giving and sharing to others for help reduce social problems. In Padang, West Sumatra there is a sharing movement known as Kopi Dindiang (KD). The purpose of this study was to describe social practices in the arena of sharing (charity) type Kopi Dindiang in the Padang city. This Study uses a qualitative approach to the type of descriptive and informants using purposive sampling techniques. In analysing this research the writer uses social practice theory from Pierre Felix Bourdieu which discuss several concepts namely habit, field and capital with the formula (habit x capital) + Field = social practice, and data collection techniques through interviews and observations. The results of this study indicate that the habit and capital owned by agents do not always determine the success of a field. The proof is that social practices in the field of type Kopi Dindiang have decreased in existence due to several constraints from donors and outlet owners. such as causes of inactivity of Kopi Dindiang outlets which also relates to the structure that has been determined, as 3 less active and 5 the causes of inactivity of Kopi Dindiang donors. While the authors found 7 of habit from donors and owners of Kopi Dindiang outlets.

scholarly journals Transformation Is ‘Experienced, Not Delivered’: Insights from Grounding the Discourse in Practice to Inform Policy and Theory

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronlyn Duncan ◽  
Melissa Robson-Williams ◽  
Graeme Nicholas ◽  
James Turner ◽  
Rawiri Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Explanatory Model ◽  
Knowledge Generation ◽  
Interpretive Research ◽  
Social Practice Theory ◽  
Conceptual Base ◽  
Research Endeavor

Calls for transformation, transformative research, and transformational impact are increasingly heard from governments, industry, and universities to recast a course towards sustainability. This paper retraces a social, qualitative, and interpretive research endeavor to contribute to broadening the conceptual base of transformation. Drawing on perspectives of practitioners involved in working with communities to bring about change in how land and water are managed, the objective of the research was to elicit a range of practice-based encounters of transformation to inform policy and theory. In identifying precursors and processes for change, the findings bring into view the often unseen internal and experiential dimensions of transformation. As such, the research provides insights on where transformation takes place, what the first step of transformation might look like, and what might be deemed transformational. The paper also builds on social practice theory to produce an explanatory model of transformational capacity that is enabled and constrained by structures, processes, understanding, and authority that impact on social practices of knowledge generation (including science) and land and water decision-making.

scholarly journals Educated professionals of sustainability and the dimensions of practices

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Janne J. Salovaara ◽  
Katriina Soini
Keyword(s):  
Professional Practice ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Sustainability Education ◽  
University Education ◽  
Social Practice Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Professional Field ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to expand the competence-led structuring and understanding of sustainability education by analysing the practices of professional individuals who have completed university education geared to the development of sustainability change-makers. Design/methodology/approach The research scope was initially on examining professional practices following the boundary work theory. Social practice theory was used as a methodological approach in conducting and analysing thematic interviews with 19 sustainability-focused master’s programme alumni. The interviews were analysed against the theoretical framework while also noting findings that fell outside of this framework. Findings A framework for understanding materials, competences and meanings of practices connected to the professional field of sustainability was introduced. The framework suggests that in the practices of sustainability-educated professionals, meanings emerge as a top priority and are conveyed using position-based materials and various complexes of competency. Research limitations/implications The authors suggest that boundary theory informs well the emergence of the professional field of sustainability, and the utilisation of a practice theory furthers the understanding of sustainability professionalism and its education. Practical implications The authors’ suggest that practice theory could thus provide deeper insights on how sustainability science alumni use their education after graduation, how they practice their profession and in return offer applicable reflections to sustainability education. Originality/value Research using practice theory in reflection on sustainability education and the professional practice of sustainability has not been widely conducted and in the authors’ opinion brings value to the education and practice of sustainability and to the research of sustainability education.

scholarly journals Understanding cycling in Quito through the lens of Social Practice Theory

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Antonio Vivanco
Keyword(s):  
Urban Form ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
Road User ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Sustainable Mobility ◽  
Social Practice Theory

Understanding cycling in Quito through the lens of Social Practice Theory. José Antonio Vivanco Viladot The Bartlett School of Planning, University College of London, Central House, 14 Upper Woburn Place, WC1H 0NN, London. E-mail: [email protected] Keywords: Quito, Ecuador, Social Practice Theory, Transport behavior, Cycling Conference topics and scale: Urban form and social use of space  In Quito, the relatively recent development of infrastructure and programs to promote cycling has become central in the discussion for sustainable mobility[1]. Moreover, considering that the scheme ‘Ciclopaseo’ has been an important dominical event for many families over a decade, if compared with the low rates of cycling in the modal share, questions surge about the effectiveness of all these measures. Moreover, the appropriateness of cycling in a city with geographical, morphological, social, and cultural challenges for practitioners has been analysed. The use of Social Practice Theory[2] provides a theoretical framework to understand holistically the daily mobility of two groups: a representative sample composed by University students, gives a specific target for policy making; while a parallel sample puts into perspective the validity of the results. SSPS and ArcGIS are used for the analysis of primary data collected with Google Forms. Overall, the analysis of each one of the elements of practice explains a dimension of the self-reinforcing barriers to cycle. It is revealed that the construction of meanings in daily travel, especially cycling, is based on instrumental factors such as travel time and distance, but non-instrumental factors related to safeness and security weigh heavily in travel behaviour, creating psychological barriers to cycling. It is concluded that reshaping the meanings of cycling is necessary by the construction of a culture of ‘road user behaviour’, the creation of physic-temporal-symbolic spaces to build cycling skills, and later transform the transport system, road infrastructure, streetscape, and the social rhythms of Quito into cycle-friendly spaces. References:   [1] Mogollón, D.O. & Albornoz, M.B.B. (2016) ‘La bicicleta y la transformación del espacio público en Quito (2003-2014)’. Letras Verdes. Revista Latinoamericana de Estudios Socioambientales 19, 24-44. [2] Shove, E. (2010) ‘Beyond the ABC: climate change policy and theories of social change’, uofool of Planning. , K.,l life'ollege of London.Environment and planning A, 42(6), 1273-85. Schatzki, T. (2009) ‘Timespace and the organization of social life’. In Shove, E., Trentmann, F. & Wilk, R. Time, consumption and everyday life: Practice, materiality and culture. London: Bloomsbury, 35-48. Schwanen, T. & Lucas, K. (2011) ‘Chapter 1: Understanding Auto Motives’. In Lucas, K., Blumenberg, E. & Weinberger, Auto motives : understanding car use behaviours (Evelyn Blumenberg) 

scholarly journals The Role of Mitigation Options for Achieving a Low-Carbon Economy in the Netherlands in 2050 Using a System Dynamics Modelling Approach

Climate ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 132
Author(s):  
Vincent Linderhof ◽  
Kristie Dekkers ◽  
Nico Polman
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Mitigation Options ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Energy And Climate Policy ◽  
Business As Usual ◽  
Carbon Economy ◽  
Policy Scenarios

To reach a low-carbon economy in the Netherlands, the level of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions has to be reduced by 80–95% CO2 emissions compared to 1990 (223.1 MtCO2-equivalents). This study aims to address how investment subsidies combined with carbon levies could be deployed to support technological mitigation options to achieve a low-carbon economy in the Netherlands in 2050. A system dynamic model has been built including demographic-economic, energy and environmental sub-systems of the Netherlands. The model has been validated with earlier projections of the EU for the energy and climate policy in 2050. Next to the business-as-usual scenario, there are four policy scenarios simulated from 2010 to 2050. In all policy scenarios a carbon levy was imposed on non-renewable energy to finance subsidies on mitigation options. Results show that imposing subsidies on the mitigation option renewable energy is most effective in combination with the carbon levy.

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