Just energy transitions? Energy policy and the adoption of clean energy technology by households in Sweden

Abstract

The Nordic countries, including Sweden, are often considered to be at the forefront of the drive to introduce sustainable energy technology, including at the household level, as part of the transition to sustainable societies. For a transition to become reality, all groups of society have to be part of it, and the social sciences have a role in investigating the conditions for these groups to be involved. The extent to which diverse (including marginalised) communities and households are part of this transition and have equitable access to the relevant technologies, including smart technologies, and the degree to which the transition is a shared value and aspiration is still unclear. We want to explore what steps are being taken in Sweden to incorporate these groups in planning and technology access, and to what extent this is supported by a range of entities, from the Swedish Energy Agency to grassroots organizations, with a particular focus on social, gender and migrant perspectives. Our preliminary evaluation of Swedish energy policy documents indicates that, while social justice and gender considerations are acknowledged, little funding is actually allocated towards social science covering these areas. Moreover, there is no mention of ethnic equality or the inclusion of migrant communities in the documents that we reviewed. With this Perspective we highlight the need for further research to develop a more nuanced understanding of the different narratives embedded in household sustainable energy usage and decision-making around the adoption of sustainable energy technologies at the household level.