An almost inexhaustible number of conceptual approaches has arisen in the past few decades to seek to explain the interlinked phenomena of energy transitions, low-carbon transitions, or sociotechnical change. With an eye for theoretical synthesis, this study asks: What do three particular epistemic communities—those concerning innovation, practices, and justice—say about energy transitions? What does this literature reveal about the injustices and inequalities of energy transitions? Finally, what can we learn by integrating aspects of this literature? The study answers these questions by drawing from responsible research and innovation, social practice theory, and energy justice approaches. Essentially the first is about the design of technology, the second how it is used, the third the broader societal and global implications. Taken together, the study offers an integrative framework capable of analyzing transitions from their “cradle” of design to their “life” of use to their “grave” of aftereffects. It explores the extent to which the three perspectives can be integrated into a meta-theoretical framework. This integrative framework is then applied to four diverse case studies: French nuclear power, Greek wind energy, Papua New Guinean solar energy, and Estonian oil shale.

在过去的几十年中，已经出现了无穷无尽的概念方法，以试图解释能量转换，低碳转换或社会技术变革的相互联系的现象。着眼于理论综合，这项研究提出：三个特定的认知社区（涉及创新，实践和正义的社区）对能量转换有何看法？关于能量转换的不公正性和不平等性，这些文献揭示了什么？最后，通过整合这些文献，我们可以学到什么？该研究通过负责任的研究和创新，社会实践理论和能源正义方法来回答这些问题。本质上，第一个是关于技术的设计，第二个是技术的使用方式，第三个是更广泛的社会和全球影响。在一起 该研究提供了一个综合的框架，能够分析从设计的“摇篮”到使用的“寿命”再到后效的“严重”的过渡。它探讨了在何种程度上可以将这三个观点整合为一个整体。元理论框架。然后，该集成框架将应用于四个不同的案例研究：法国核电，希腊风能，巴布亚新几内亚太阳能和爱沙尼亚油页岩。