A perspective on the human dimensions of a transition to net-zero energy systems

Abstract Net-zero energy systems are critical for reducing global temperature change to 1.5°C. Transitioning to net-zero systems is simultaneously a technological and a social challenge. Different net-zero configurations imply different system and lifestyle changes, and strongly depend on people supporting and adopting these changes. This Perspective presents key insights from the social sciences into factors that motivate low-carbon behaviour and support for low-carbon technologies, policies, and system changes that would need to be addressed to successfully design, develop, implement, and operate net-zero systems. As there is no single net-zero solution, and configurations may differ from region to region, we discuss cultural and regional factors that can enable or inhibit the implementation of net-zero systems on a global scale.

[1]  C. Vlek,et al.  Encouraging pro-environmental behaviour : An integrative review and research agenda , 2009 .

[2]  Eduardo Silva.  Patagonia, without Dams! Lessons of a David vs. Goliath campaign , 2016 .

[3]  W. Poortinga,et al.  Household preferences for energy-saving measures: A conjoint analysis , 2003 .

[4]  Ernst H. Noppers,et al.  The adoption of sustainable innovations: Driven by symbolic and environmental motives , 2014 .

[5]  Lance Noel,et al.  Dismissive and deceptive car dealerships create barriers to electric vehicle adoption at the point of sale , 2018, Nature Energy.

[6]  Benjamin K. Sovacool,et al.  Exploring and Contextualizing Public Opposition to Renewable Electricity in the United States , 2009 .

[7]  R. Keeney,et al.  Eliciting public values for complex policy decisions , 1990 .

[8]  Linda Steg,et al.  Contextual and psychological factors shaping evaluations and acceptability of energy alternatives: Integrated review and research agenda , 2014 .

[9]  Environmental Value , 2021, Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

[10]  Ernst H. Noppers,et al.  The adoption of sustainable innovations: The role of instrumental, environmental, and symbolic attributes for earlier and later adopters , 2015 .

[11]  Meryl P. Gardner,et al.  Faring well in offshore wind power siting? Trust, engagement and process fairness in the United States , 2020, Energy Research & Social Science.

[12]  John A. Glaser,et al.  Environmental values , 2008 .

[13]  Chad Walker,et al.  Procedural justice in Canadian wind energy development: A comparison of community-based and technocratic siting processes , 2017 .

[14]  J. Rogelj,et al.  Net-zero emissions targets are vague: three ways to fix , 2021, Nature.

[15]  B. Fischhoff,et al.  Advertising energy saving programs: The potential environmental cost of emphasizing monetary savings. , 2015, Journal of experimental psychology. Applied.

[16]  Ned Augenblick,et al.  Ballot Position, Choice Fatigue, and Voter Behaviour , 2016 .

[17]  Linda Steg,et al.  Beyond purchasing: Electric vehicle adoption motivation and consistent sustainable energy behaviour in The Netherlands , 2018 .

[18]  L. Steg,et al.  Translating climate beliefs into action in a changing political landscape , 2020, Climatic Change.

[19]  Diana Ürge-Vorsatz,et al.  Demand-side approaches for limiting global warming to 1.5 °C , 2018, Energy Efficiency.

[20]  Yu-Sung Su,et al.  Could more civil society involvement increase public support for climate policy-making? Evidence from a survey experiment in China , 2016 .

[21]  N. Pidgeon,et al.  Public perceptions of carbon dioxide removal in the United States and the United Kingdom , 2020, Nature Climate Change.

[22]  Benjamin K. Sovacool,et al.  Rejecting Renewables: The Socio-Technical Impediments to Renewable Electricity in the United States , 2008, Renewable Energy.

[23]  L. Steg,et al.  Why going green feels good , 2020, Journal of Environmental Psychology.

[24]  Kung-Ming Chung,et al.  LOCAL MARKET OF SOLAR WATER HEATERS IN TAIWAN , 2009 .

[25]  Sebastian Haunss,et al.  Competing coalitions: The politics of renewable energy and fossil fuels in Mexico, South Africa and Thailand , 2017 .

[26]  Evelina Trutnevyte,et al.  Perspectives of Informed Citizen Panel on Low-Carbon Electricity Portfolios in Switzerland and Longer-Term Evaluation of Informational Materials. , 2018, Environmental science & technology.

[27]  Maarten Wolsink,et al.  Near-shore Wind Power - Protected Seascapes, Environmentalists' Attitudes, and the Technocratic Planning Perspective , 2010 .

[28]  L. Steg,et al.  Explaining differences in acceptability before and acceptance after the implementation of a congestion charge in Stockholm , 2010 .

[29]  Susanne C. Moser,et al.  The social heart of global environmental change , 2014 .

[30]  Kieran Reilly,et al.  Moving from consultation to participation: A case study of the involvement of fishermen in decisions relating to marine renewable energy projects on the island of Ireland , 2016 .

[31]  W. Abrahamse,et al.  Social influence approaches to encourage resource conservation: A meta-analysis , 2013 .

[32]  G. T. Gardner,et al.  The Short List: The Most Effective Actions U.S. Households Can Take to Curb Climate Change , 2008 .

[33]  W. Konrad,et al.  The good, the bad, and the ambivalent: A qualitative study of public perceptions towards energy technologies and portfolios in Germany , 2017 .

[34]  Kimberly S. Wolske,et al.  Explaining interest in adopting residential solar photovoltaic systems in the United States: Toward an integration of behavioral theories , 2017 .

[35]  Michael Siegrist,et al.  Trust and Risk Perception: A Critical Review of the Literature , 2019, Risk analysis : an official publication of the Society for Risk Analysis.

[36]  Kimberly S. Wolske,et al.  Contributions of psychology to limiting climate change: Opportunities through consumer behavior , 2018 .

[37]  Hans Spada,et al.  The power of putting a label on it: green labels weigh heavier than contradicting product information for consumers’ purchase decisions and post-purchase behavior , 2015, Front. Psychol..

[38]  G. T. Gardner,et al.  Household actions can provide a behavioral wedge to rapidly reduce US carbon emissions , 2009, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[39]  Nicholas Frank Pidgeon,et al.  Effects of exemplar scenarios on public preferences for energy futures using the my2050 scenario-building tool , 2017, Nature Energy.

[40]  Duane T. Wegener,et al.  Social Psychological Dimensions of Bioenergy Development and Public Acceptance , 2008, BioEnergy Research.

[41]  E T Verhoef,et al.  Effects of Pay-As-You-Drive vehicle insurance on young drivers' speed choice: results of a Dutch field experiment. , 2011, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[42]  Linda Steg,et al.  Explaining the Paradox: How Pro-Environmental Behaviour can both Thwart and Foster Well-Being , 2013 .

[43]  van der Werff,et al.  A meta-analysis of factors related to recycling , 2019, Journal of Environmental Psychology.

[44]  P. Stern,et al.  A broader social science research agenda on sustainability: Nongovernmental influences on climate footprints , 2020 .

[45]  J. Thøgersen.  Promoting public transport as a subscription service: Effects of a free month travel card , 2009 .

[46]  A. Spence,et al.  Public values for energy system change , 2015 .

[47]  Mari Martiskainen,et al.  Temporality, consumption, and conflict: exploring user-based injustices in European low-carbon transitions , 2020, Technol. Anal. Strateg. Manag..

[48]  Maarten Wolsink,et al.  Wind power implementation: The nature of public attitudes: Equity and fairness instead of ‘backyard motives’ , 2007 .

[49]  P. Simmons,et al.  Reframing nuclear power in the UK energy debate: nuclear power, climate change mitigation and radioactive waste , 2008, Public understanding of science.

[50]  L. Steg,et al.  Effects of competence- and integrity-based trust on public acceptability of renewable energy projects in China and the Netherlands , 2020 .

[51]  Joseph Rand,et al.  Thirty years of North American wind energy acceptance research: What have we learned? , 2017 .

[52]  Justine Lacey,et al.  How wind became a four-letter word: Lessons for community engagement from a wind energy conflict in King Island, Australia , 2016 .

[53]  Clark A. Miller,et al.  Sociotechnical agendas: Reviewing future directions for energy and climate research , 2020, Energy Research & Social Science.

[54]  L. Steg,et al.  In it for the money, the environment, or the community? Motives for being involved in community energy initiatives , 2019, Global Environmental Change.

[55]  Christina Demski,et al.  Creating a national citizen engagement process for energy policy , 2014, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[56]  L. Steg,et al.  Comparing the effectiveness of monetary versus moral motives in environmental campaigning , 2013 .

[57]  Linda Steg,et al.  Psychological research and global climate change , 2015 .

[58]  E. Zervas,et al.  Public acceptance of biofuels , 2010 .

[59]  Lester Mackey,et al.  S2S reboot: An argument for greater inclusion of machine learning in subseasonal to seasonal forecasts , 2018, WIREs Climate Change.

[60]  L. Steg,et al.  I Am What I Am, by Looking Past the Present , 2012 .

[61]  M. Vandenbergh,et al.  A framework for assessing the impact of private climate governance , 2020 .

[62]  L. Steg,et al.  The Significance of Hedonic Values for Environmentally Relevant Attitudes, Preferences, and Actions , 2014 .

[63]  P. Devine‐Wright.  Rethinking NIMBYism: The role of place attachment and place identity in explaining place‐protective action , 2009 .

[64]  Lauren A. Mayer,et al.  Informed public choices for low-carbon electricity portfolios using a computer decision tool. , 2014, Environmental science & technology.

[65]  J. Martínez-Alier,et al.  Movements shaping climate futures: A systematic mapping of protests against fossil fuel and low-carbon energy projects , 2020, Environmental Research Letters.

[66]  Linda Steg,et al.  When Are Transport Pricing Policies Fair and Acceptable? , 2011 .

[67]  Tim. Chatterton,et al.  Carbon reduction scenarios for 2050: An explorative analysis of public preferences , 2013 .

[68]  Thomas Dietz,et al.  Bringing values and deliberation to science communication , 2013, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[69]  Linda Steg,et al.  The psychology of participation and interest in smart energy systems: Comparing the value-belief-norm theory and the value-identity-personal norm model , 2016 .

[70]  S. Levinson,et al.  WEIRD languages have misled us, too , 2010, Behavioral and Brain Sciences.

[71]  Andrew K. Jorgenson,et al.  Social science perspectives on drivers of and responses to global climate change , 2018, Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Climate change.

[72]  L. Steg,et al.  Can community energy initiatives motivate sustainable energy behaviours? The role of initiative involvement and personal pro-environmental motivation , 2018, Journal of Environmental Psychology.

[73]  Jay D. Hmielowski,et al.  Public support for energy portfolios in Canada: How information about cost and national energy portfolios affect perceptions of energy systems , 2018, Energy & Environment.

[74]  Magali A. Delmas,et al.  Nonprice incentives and energy conservation , 2015, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[75]  M Granger Morgan,et al.  Informed Public Preferences for Electricity Portfolios with CCS and Other Low‐Carbon Technologies , 2010, Risk analysis : an official publication of the Society for Risk Analysis.

[76]  Linda Steg,et al.  The relationship between Corporate Environmental Responsibility, employees’ biospheric values and pro-environmental behaviour at work , 2017 .

[77]  Ulrike Hahn,et al.  Self-interest and pro-environmental behaviour , 2013 .

[78]  T. Bernauer,et al.  Effects of civil society involvement on popular legitimacy of global environmental governance , 2013 .

[79]  Paul C. Stern,et al.  Examining the decision-making processes behind household energy investments: A review , 2015 .

[80]  L. Steg,et al.  Environmental considerations in the organizational context: A pathway to pro-environmental behaviour at work , 2016 .

[81]  Gordon Walker,et al.  Good Neighbours, Public Relations and Bribes: The Politics and Perceptions of Community Benefit Provision in Renewable Energy Development in the UK , 2010 .

[82]  M. Schlesewsky,et al.  Two routes to actorhood: lexicalized potency to act and identification of the actor role , 2015, Front. Psychol..

[83]  Elisabeth R. Gerber,et al.  Motivational Crowding in Sustainable Development Interventions , 2015, American Political Science Review.

[84]  L. Steg,et al.  The value of environmental self-identity: The relationship between biospheric values, environmental self-identity and environmental preferences, intentions and behaviour , 2013 .

[85]  L. Steg,et al.  Motivating Society-wide Pro-environmental Change , 2019, One Earth.

[86]  B. Sovacool,et al.  Contextualizing climate justice activism: Knowledge, emotions, motivations, and actions among climate strikers in six cities , 2020, Global Environmental Change.

[87]  J. Henrich,et al.  The weirdest people in the world? , 2010, Behavioral and Brain Sciences.

[88]  Benjamin Sovacool,et al.  Differences in carbon emissions reduction between countries pursuing renewable electricity versus nuclear power , 2020, Nature Energy.

[89]  Richard H. Moss,et al.  From global change science to action with social sciences , 2014 .

[90]  Edgar G. Hertwich,et al.  Towards demand-side solutions for mitigating climate change , 2018, Nature Climate Change.

[91]  L. Steg,et al.  Effects of trust and public participation on acceptability of renewable energy projects in the Netherlands and China , 2019, Energy Research & Social Science.

[92]  F. Creutzig,et al.  Quantifying the potential for climate change mitigation of consumption options , 2020, Environmental Research Letters.

[93]  Keywan Riahi,et al.  A low energy demand scenario for meeting the 1.5 °C target and sustainable development goals without negative emission technologies , 2018, Nature Energy.

[94]  Matthew R. Shaner,et al.  Net-zero emissions energy systems , 2018, Science.

[95]  Emma ter Mors,et al.  It's not only about safety: Beliefs and attitudes of 811 local residents regarding a CCS project in Barendrecht , 2012 .

[96]  H. Boudet,et al.  Public Preferences in a Shifting Energy Future: Comparing Public Views of Eight Energy Sources in North America’s Pacific Northwest , 2020, Energies.

[97]  Frank N. Laird,et al.  The diverging paths of German and United States policies for renewable energy: Sources of difference , 2009 .

[98]  I. Azevedo,et al.  Comparing consumer perceptions of appliances’ electricity use to appliances’ actual direct-metered consumption , 2019, Environmental Research Communications.

[99]  Linda Steg,et al.  Limiting climate change requires research on climate action , 2018, Nature Climate Change.

[100]  Linda Steg,et al.  Opportunities and insights for reducing fossil fuel consumption by households and organizations , 2016, Nature Energy.

[101]  Christina Demski,et al.  The relationship between justice and acceptance of energy transition costs in the UK , 2018, Applied Energy.

[102]  G. Perlaviciute,et al.  Public Participation in Climate Policy Making: Toward Reconciling Public Preferences and Legal Frameworks , 2020 .

[103]  Staffan Jacobsson,et al.  The politics and policy of energy system transformation—explaining the German diffusion of renewable energy technology , 2006 .

[104]  L. Steg.  Values, Norms, and Intrinsic Motivation to Act Proenvironmentally , 2016 .

[105]  A. Haurie,et al.  Economic assessment of the development of CO2 direct reduction technologies in long-term climate strategies of the Gulf countries , 2021, Climatic Change.

[106]  Joseph L Arvai.  Using risk communication to disclose the outcome of a participatory decision-making process: effects on the perceived acceptability of risk-policy decisions. , 2003, Risk analysis : an official publication of the Society for Risk Analysis.

[107]  C. Vlek,et al.  A review of intervention studies aimed at household energy conservation , 2005 .

[108]  L. Steg,et al.  The Relationship Between People’s Environmental Considerations and Pro-environmental Behavior in Lithuania , 2019, Front. Psychol..

[109]  Johannes Pohl,et al.  Attitudes of U.S. Wind Turbine Neighbors: Analysis of a Nationwide Survey , 2019, Energy Policy.

[110]  Miriam Ricci,et al.  What do we know about public perceptions and acceptance of hydrogen? A critical review and new case study evidence , 2008 .

[111]  L. Steg,et al.  The value of what others value: When perceived biospheric group values influence individuals’ pro-environmental engagement , 2020 .

[112]  Ulf J. J. Hahnel,et al.  Intentions to adopt photovoltaic systems depend on homeowners' expected personal gains and behavior of peers , 2015 .

[113]  L. Middlemiss,et al.  The effects of community-based action for sustainability on participants' lifestyles , 2011 .

[114]  Thomas Dietz,et al.  Design principles for carbon emissions reduction programs. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[115]  Getting a Grip on the Grapevine: Extension and Factor Structure of the Motives to Gossip Questionnaire , 2019, Front. Psychol..

[116]  H. Boudet,et al.  Public perceptions of and responses to new energy technologies , 2019, Nature Energy.

[117]  Renée A. Irvin,et al.  Citizen Participation in Decision Making: Is It Worth the effort? , 2004 .

[118]  A. Hsu,et al.  Beyond states: Harnessing sub-national actors for the deep decarbonisation of cities, regions, and businesses , 2020 .

[119]  Michael Siegrist,et al.  Public perception of carbon capture and storage (CCS): A review , 2014 .

[120]  N. Pidgeon,et al.  Exploring cross-national public support for the use of enhanced weathering as a land-based carbon dioxide removal strategy , 2021, Climatic Change.

[121]  S. Schwartz.  Universals in the Content and Structure of Values: Theoretical Advances and Empirical Tests in 20 Countries , 1992 .

[122]  L. Steg,et al.  Follow the signal : When past pro-environmental actions signal who you are , 2014 .

[123]  Neil Hewitt,et al.  Design, Valuation and Comparison of Demand Response Strategies for Congestion Management , 2020 .

[124]  L. Steg,et al.  Public participation in decision making, perceived procedural fairness and public acceptability of renewable energy projects , 2020 .

[125]  B. Sovacool,et al.  Energy cultures and national decarbonisation pathways , 2021, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews.

[126]  Benjamin K. Sovacool,et al.  Diversity: Energy studies need social science , 2014, Nature.

[127]  J. C. van den Bergh,et al.  What explains public support for climate policies? A review of empirical and experimental studies , 2016 .

[128]  O. Edelenbosch,et al.  Alternative pathways to the 1.5 °C target reduce the need for negative emission technologies , 2018, Nature Climate Change.

[129]  Alexander J. Rothman,et al.  Paying people to protect the environment: A meta-analysis of financial incentive interventions to promote proenvironmental behaviors , 2016 .

[130]  C. Gross,et al.  Community perspectives of wind energy in Australia: The application of a justice and community fairness framework to increase social acceptance , 2007 .

[131]  M. Dekay,et al.  Public perceptions of energy consumption and savings , 2010, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[132]  P. Andrews-Speed.  Applying Institutional Theory to the Low-Carbon Energy Transition , 2015 .

[133]  Reinhard Haas,et al.  Promoting electricity from renewable energy sources -- lessons learned from the EU, U.S. and Japan , 2008 .

[134]  L. Steg,et al.  Fostering support for work floor energy conservation policies : Accounting for privacy concerns , 2013 .

[135]  Gill Seyfang,et al.  Growing Grassroots Innovations: Exploring the Role of Community-Based Initiatives in Governing Sustainable Energy Transitions , 2012 .