Ambitious government and utility targets for renewable energy as part of a ‘low carbon transition’ mean that the winds and waves of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland have a new found value. The region is becoming a site for large renewable energy projects, as well as opening up opportunities for local communities to develop … Continue reading »
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Teaching about Grassroots Innovations
Grassroots innovations are, by definition, trying to create new, more sustainable systems in society. These could be food systems, energy systems, transport systems, housing systems, money systems, etc. They embody a model of social change that sees society as being structured by social, economic, political and technological systems. This is fundamentally different to individualistic models … Continue reading »
Grassroots Innovations at New Economics summer institute
Gill Seyfang is one of a core faculty team teaching about Grassroots Innovations and Sustainability Transitions at the Second Annual Summer Institute in New Economics hosted by the Wingspread Retreat Center, Wind Point, WI (USA) August 12-18, 2013. Dire ecological news and the failures of the global economy are fuelling interest in a “new economics” grounded in … Continue reading »
New book: Innovations in Sustainable Consumption
Sabine Hielscher, Gill Seyfang and Adrian Smith from the CISE project have a chapter in a new book on Innovations in Sustainable Consumption. The chapter explains how the project studies community initiatives in the UK as providing a ‘niche space’ for innovation in sustainable energy services. The book, edited by Maurie J. Cohen, Halina Szejnwald … Continue reading »
Book chapter: Exploring niche development processes among community energy initiatives
Sabine Hielscher, Gill Seyfang and Adrian Smith from the CISE project have a chapter in a new book on Innovations in Sustainable Consumption. Hielscher, S., Seyfang, G. and Smith, A. (2013) ‘Grassroots Innovations for Sustainable Energy: Exploring niche development processes among community energy initiatives’ in Cohen, M., Brown, H. and Vergragt, P. (eds)Innovations in Sustainable … Continue reading »
A declaration for grassroots innovation
An international declaration for grassroots innovation has recently been issued. Its authors set out a series of recommendations for improving the support for grassroots innovation in ways they believe will realise a deeper set of innovation possibilities. Adrian Smith has blogged about the declaration, and you can learn more here. http://stepscentre-thecrossing.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/what-new-ahmedabad-declaration-means.html
Grassroots innovations study produces prize-winning paper
Academics from the University of East Anglia’s research group 3S (Science, Society and Sustainability) have won a prize for their paper on the role of the Transition Towns network in the shift to more sustainable energy systems. The British Sociological Association’s Climate Change Study Group awarded the paper joint-second prize in its 2012 competition for … Continue reading »
A Bright Future for Local Currencies
The International Journal of Community Currency Research relaunches and publishes a special issue reflecting on 30 years of experience in designing and using parallel currencies to tackle economic, social and environmental issues. Continue reading »
Sustainable development needs inclusive innovation
Adrian Smith and Adrian Ely blogged for the Guardian today from the Rio+20 Summit, arguing that sustainable development has to address inclusive innovation. You can read the blog here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2012/jun/18/rio20-inclusive-innovation-sustainable-future Whilst government negotiators here struggle over forms of words, the People’s Summit in Rio provides many examples of grassroots innovators getting on with sustainable development.
CISE work with the Brighton Energy Coop: Persistence, determination and adaptability
BEC launches their community energy share issue Sabine Hielscher writes: On Wednesday the 16th of May 2012, the Brighton Energy Coop launched their share invitation to the public at the Friends Meeting House in Brighton. It was fascinating to see how the team’s hard work had come together to finally arrive at this event. What … Continue reading »
