Exploring the developmental possibilities of environmental activities: On-farm biogas production

Abstract

Abstract Policy-makers and practitioners face the difficult task of designing new activities to help solve environmental problems and improve the sustainability of production. Although several studies have paid attention to the development of new technologies, the conditions and forms of applying these technologies have been analyzed less often. To design economically and functionally viable forms of environmental activities, a configuration of other complementary elements is needed. In this article, we propose that an analysis of historically evolved forms of environmental activities enables a more realistic assessment of future possibilities than a decontextualized assessment of technologies. Using two cases of on-farm biogas production; one from Finland and one from Brazil, we demonstrate how such analysis can be carried out and used for assessing developmental possibilities. We further argue that this type of analysis may contribute to filling the gap between studies that focus on the general societal benefits of environmental activities and those that focus on their specific technological aspects, suggesting an intermediate-level research object: the historical development of qualitatively different forms that are applicable in different types of environments and historical situations.