This ‘farewell editorial’ looks back at a ten-year period of serving as founding editor-in-chief of EIST. It shares some personal experiences as well as thoughts about content and style.

We analyse 465 articles published in EIST from June 2011 until June 2021 to identify topics addressed in the journal. We find eight main topics and assess how their shares changed over time as well as how many citations they received. The topics with the largest shares in all publications are “Theory of socio-technical transitions” and “Urban regimes and niches”. The two most cited topics, “Theory

Transitions research has paid increasing attention to the different spatial scales of transitions. This special section considers whether fundamental changes in structures, cultures and practices can be addressed at local or district scales. This focus on local scales also draws the attention to different types of local actors, their roles, activities, networks and interactions. Conceptual papers develop

Basic materials such as steel and cement have been instrumental to modern society, but the production requires high energy inputs and is associated with significant CO2 emissions. Long investment cycles, slow turnover rate of the capital stock, and high capital intensity mean that basic materials industries are among the economic activities that will be the most difficult to decarbonize. Although the

This paper contributes to the geography of transitions literature by conceptualizing transition trajectories from a multi-scalar perspective. It combines an institutional perspective of transitions with conceptions of scale from human geography to derive a framework which explicates how (de-)institutionalization and re-scaling mechanisms condition different transition trajectories. Our conceptual elaborations

This paper advances scholarship on deliberate destabilisation for sustainability transitions. To understand how deliberate destabilisation plays out in practice, the politics of such processes must be confronted. To this end, we bridge research on the political economy of sustainability transitions with recent theorisations of the deliberate destabilisation of unsustainable socio-technical regimes

This paper develops the use of the branching point concept as a tool to support key decisions for reorienting systems for sustainability. In this approach, a pathway is seen as arising from accumulation of many specific decisions which create momentum in a particular direction and so reinforce the irreversibility of the pathway. Three complementary approaches to branching point analysis are identified

Earth system interventions (ESIs)—intentional large-scale interventions in Earth systems—are not entirely new. However, in response to threats to sustainability, particularly from climate change and biodiversity loss, some scientists and others are researching, developing, and using new, largely technological ESIs. These include carbon dioxide removal, solar geoengineering, in situ genetically modified

The sustainability transitions literature departs from the idea that grand challenges such as climate change and rising inequality call for far-reaching changes in sociotechnical systems of production and consumption. This implies a dual interest in the directionality of innovation; some directions of change can be perceived as more desirable, while others may be more plausible due to the path dependent

This paper explores conceptualisations of households in sustainability transitions. Existing literature in the field has only engaged with households in a limited and fragmented way, despite the role of households in resource use, shaping social innovation and as a target of environmental policies. The paper asks: how are households conceptualised in sustainability transitions and how could this be

Renewable energy and energy efficiency are recognized among the key factors of transitioning towards a low-consumption and low-carbon society. In order to achieve such transition, the government policies should be aimed at meeting the renewable energy generation and energy efficiency targets of specific localities. Nonetheless, these targets vary between different urban regions, and there is limited

The transition to renewable energy generates significant conflicts over time when technical innovations allowing larger wind turbine construction coincides with spatial regimentation as energy governance. The interplay of space, time and money, we argue, is crucial for understanding these conflicts. Wind energy's spatial advantage of potential social co-existence of energy generation and farming gets

Transition studies have started to focus on market formation in innovation systems. This article investigates market formation in a global health transition that was instigated by drug-resistant malaria. We explore how markets for Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACT) in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) were formed at multiple geographical scales and locations. The study reveals the role

Despite the growing interest of sustainability transition studies on the role of business actors in shaping transitions, the institutionalized logic of the capitalist enterprise underlying such agency has been overlooked. However, such logic might be understood as a dominant regime that leads to unsustainable systems. We intend to contribute to transitions research by focusing on the agency of social

This paper analyses how technological and sectoral context structures influence the functional pattern of a focal technological innovation system (TIS), focusing on value chain interdependencies. Through a case study of the ‘embryonic’ bio-succinate from mixed food waste TIS in Sweden, we show that all identified context structures exert both negative and positive influences on TIS functions by influencing

The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic provides an empirical testing ground for assessing the impact of critical events on societal transitions. Such events are typically seen as exogenous to the transition process, an assumption which is investigated in this paper. Using a qualitative system dynamics modelling approach we conceptualize transition pathways as sets of interacting sequences of events. This enables

The literature on transitions recommends that both the government and the civil service should engage with profound societal problems requiring a fundamental socio-technical system change. We analyzed a corpus of 100 publications to cluster the transition tasks that the transitions literature attributes to government. These tasks are set off against the normative arguments of the Public Administration

If clean energy innovation is to be accelerated at the pace required, new approaches to designing public innovation organisations need to be developed. Despite the importance of these organisations in driving sustainability transitions, their role has not yet been explored in the literature. This paper addresses this gap by refining ten principles for publicly funded innovation organisation design

This article presents and illustrates an analytical framework designed to open-up the black-box of what and how people learn while trying to tackle sustainability problems and to investigate the potential of learning processes and outcomes to enable transitions. It consists of an analytical method: practical epistemology analysis, and two analytical models: transactional learning theory and the multi-level

Policy actions at the local level are key to reaching national and global climate and energy transition goals. This study seeks to understand the factors that explain variation in energy transition success at the local level, meaning the progress that local regions make to advance renewable energies as well as energy efficiency measures. This is done through the study of discourses that characterize

Domestic heating systems require a rapid shift to low-carbon options to meet global climate targets. We analyse a heat pump transition in two contrasting case studies: Finland and the United Kingdom, utilizing original data from interviews, document analysis, and archival online data. Finland has an almost completed transition, while the United Kingdom can be considered a stalled one. Building on previous

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has adopted a new law and policy framework, Vision 2030, designed to deliver a transition to a diversified and low-carbon economy. This paper analyses from an environmental law and policy perspective how law is providing opportunities and challenges in achieving the outcomes of this national masterplan. The paper employs traditional legal scholarship to assess the

More pluralised understandings of incumbencies are often overlooked in transitions research, which may lead to underestimating the enabling roles of incumbents in niche projects. This study explores these roles by applying a power framework to five struggles revolving around a path-breaking decentralised wastewater treatment project in the city of Ghent (Belgium). Remarkably, incumbents from multiple

We analyse the potential for industry entry and catching up by latecomer countries or firms in formative sectors, by deriving a framework that builds on the concept of windows of opportunity for catching up. This framework highlights differences in technological, market, and institutional characteristics between formative and mature sectors, and elaborates how this may affect opportunities for catching

Transitions research has often been unintentionally biased toward novelty and assumes incumbents as homogeneous groups that are “locked-in” to certain sociotechnical regimes. In reality, incumbents are heterogeneous at the company and industrial levels and thus have heterogeneous responses that can both accelerate and deter sustainability transitions. To fill the research gap, this paper explores the

The sustainability transitions literature addresses globally pressing sustainability challenges. However, the scholars in the field trend towards using the term “sustainability” in a manner that is not reflexive, often just assuming that the studied cases contribute to more sustainable modes of production and consumption. In this paper, we suggest an alternative: a reflexive sustainability perspective

A comparative lifecycle assessment (CLCA) was undertaken to determine the environmental effect or impact of teleworking compared to office-based work in a corporate setting in Australia. Teleworking was demonstrated to have smaller environmental effects than office-based working, but only under certain conditions. Teleworking was more beneficial if an employee travels ≥30 km each workday. The more

Demand response (DR) is an innovation emerging at the intersection of the energy and information and communications technology sectors. This paper aims to investigate the drivers of—and differences in—business model innovation (BMI) behaviours of firms operating in these two interacting industries. Results from 22 semi-structured interviews with representatives of Finnish DR companies show that external

The sustainability transitions research field continues to broaden rapidly, engaging scholars from a wide variety of disciplinary backgrounds. As highlighted in the STRN research agenda, transitions research relies on a broad range of methodological approaches; yet the methodological diversity of transitions studies has remained somewhat limited. In this article, we investigate if this verdict still

The use of participatory modelling approaches in sustainability transition studies has been limited despite its potential contributions to transitions research. In this article, a methodological framework was designed based on a Participatory Systems Mapping (PSM) approach to structure and frame sustainability problems in transition management processes. The framework comprises three phases: 1) transition

The transport sector accounts for 27 % of total CO2 emissions in the EU, with almost half of these being attributed to passenger cars and the automotive industry. In order to meet the Paris Agreement 1.5 °C target, these figures call for interventionist policies that go beyond individual consumer choice and transform industrial sectors. The article conceptually elaborates on the advancements in transformation

With the diffusion of digital technologies, new forms of sharing have emerged called ‘the sharing economy’. Digitalization has been the enabler for covering a broad range of sharable resources (technical aspect of sharing) and for operating beyond the limits of small groups and personal relationships (social aspect of sharing). This two-fold digital transition of sharing has enabled unprecedented efficiency

Because of the urgency of accelerating transitions, we examine the emerging understanding of the concept of ‘disruption’ in the context of sustainability transition studies to critically assess its value, pitfalls and potentials. By conducting a qualitative systematic review of 47 articles, we analyse how disruption is seen in this literature and what is being disrupted. We identify four non-technical

As energy transitions advance through the introduction of renewable energy production and new types of energy demands, expectations for more flexible electricity consumption has risen on agendas among system designers and scholars. Social scientists have followed this development through studies of technological visions and users of new flexibility techniques (e.g. demand-side management, pricing,

Although research on sustainability transitions has addressed transnational linkages, little attention has yet been paid to the international diffusion and transfer of public policies. Transitions studies and research on policy transfer have had sparse interaction thus far. This viewpoint argues that the two fields can enrich each other through new research topics and findings on the influencing factors

What is needed for the private sector to successfully establish itself as a key player in delivering sustainable sanitation in the Global South? The present paper aims to offer some answers to this through the case of Peepoople AB, a company delivering a single-use biodegradable toilet bag in informal settlements. The company aimed to but failed in combining sustainable development of sanitation and

Like many countries, since the 1980s, Australia has introduced a range of government policies to support the development of a biofuels industry. Despite growth in the use of biofuels over this period industry development has not progressed to the extent seen in many of these other countries. This paper uses the technological innovation systems perspective to guide an historical event analysis of the

Empirical research on the diffusion of environmental product and service innovations has significant limits: almost all investigations focus on just a single sector or technology, usually energy, and concern a small number of diffusion cases. Therefore, it is hardly possible to generalize across sectors and to identify potential differences between sectors. We address this research gap with an investigation

With the growing attention to political dimensions of sustainability transitions (STs), researchers have shown interest in theoretical frameworks from policy studies and sociology. A framework that has growing popularity is the theory of strategic action fields (SAF) as developed by Fligstein and McAdam (2011; 2012). This review shows 1) how the integrated and holistic approach of SAF theory can contribute

Why do some communities develop better environmental governance outcomes than others? Past research tends to focus on national governments, explaining how states with better environmental governance outcomes tend to have more resources, such as stronger government capacity, or fewer obstacles, like fewer ties to major polluting industries. This study tests whether the social capital and community-building

How does the spatial context shape early innovation trajectories and how will this influence the directionality of transitions? We elaborate these questions for the case of transitions in personal mobility, focusing on emerging trajectories of electric vehicles and autonomous driving. We analyze how the dynamics depend on whether innovation and transition strategies are primarily geared towards urban

Governments worldwide have formulated visions of a transition toward a bio-based economy (bioeconomy). These visions to move beyond the exploitation of fossil resources complement the United Nation’s sustainability goals such as climate change mitigation. Different factors will shape and foster the successful transition to a knowledge-based bioeconomy; among those factors, entrepreneurial activity

Once transitions progress beyond the start-up phase, niche technologies diffuse more widely to generate important knock-on effects in a focal sector. This entails a need for moving beyond niches to embrace a 'whole system perspective'. In the power sector, this perspective puts electricity networks in a more central position. This paper analyses how the governance of power networks is challenged by

Deliberate technology phase-out is being recognised as a viable policy option to weaken incumbent socio-technical configurations. At the same time, phase-out as a phenomenon has not been the focus of much attention in innovation studies and science and technology studies, where interest in emergence of technologies dominates. This is puzzling because phase-outs of socio-technical configurations are

While the concept of ‘just transitions’ has become more and more prominent in academic and popular discussions of sustainability transition, these conceptions are often framed in purely economic terms, and focus on the economic impact on communities, regions, and nation-states. We argue that a broader conception of justice in transitions, and in particular energy transitions, is required. Questions

In this paper, we offer a comprehensive and interdisciplinary review of ‘failure’ in transitions research. What is meant by failure, and is the community biased against it? How is failure explained through different perspectives? How can failures be addressed more appropriately in transitions studies? We synthesize a large body of evidence spanning transitions studies, innovation studies, science and

The uptake of electric vans in professional enterprises has been slow, and the interest in electric mobility is low compared to that of private consumers. To understand critical barriers, resistance, motivations and drivers we follow the implementation of e-vans (EVs) in crafts and services enterprises that have tried to replace some or all of their traditional vans with EVs. Based on a social practice

Political decisions and trends regarding coal use for electricity generation developed differently in the UK and Germany, despite being subject to relatively similar climate protection targets and general political and economic conditions. The UK agreed on a coal phase-out by 2024. In Germany, a law schedules a coal phase-out by 2038 at the latest. This paper investigates reasons for the different

Understanding socio-technical transitions, let alone managing them, is complicated. This is especially the case for many practitioners, who are commonly not well-versed in the language of transition studies but deal with transition problems on a daily basis. To make the academic knowledge on socio-technical transitions available to practitioners, we introduce the transition model canvas (TMC) as a

Access to finance is a well-recognized barrier to scaling up renewable energy. Using the case studies of Germany and China, this research explores how governments spur renewable energy deployment by examining the availability, costs, and modes of financing. It compares the major financiers, their interactions, and government policy instruments, around renewable financing in both countries. The research

Despite the challenges of decarbonisation faced by the shipping sector, this topic has rarely been addressed in sustainability transitions studies. This paper questions common views of established firms as agents resisting change and broadens discussions on the role of incumbents and strategic reorientation. Using the dynamic capabilities approach, we provide a deeper understanding of firms’ strategic

The recently developed Deep Transitions framework has so far been mainly used to explore the first deep transition towards industrial modernity. This paper looks at a potential second deep transition towards a circular economy, which is hoped to lead to a more sustainable global economic system. Our focus is on exploring the role of the EU in developing and diffusing this emerging set of rules. We

In order to achieve the UNFCCC Paris Agreement goals, climate policies worldwide require considerable ratcheting-up. Policy sequencing provides a framework for analysing policy process dynamics that facilitate ratcheting-up. We apply a sequencing perspective to two key EU climate and energy policies, the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and the Renewable Energy Directive (RED), to comparatively test

Transitions are processes of major change and often come with conflict. There has been limited attention for the complex and multi-dimensional nature of conflict and its relation to transformative change. To capture this complexity, we use the case of ridesharing in Indonesia and the dynamics of conflict that accompany the emergence of digital innovations in mobility services. We use the notion of

The success of environmental innovations and sustainability transitions critically depends on market formations and diffusion processes. As of today, the geography of transitions literature provides suitable terms and case study evidence that these processes are highly regional phenomena. However, pertinent conceptual frameworks such as the multi-level perspective, technological innovation systems

Citizen projects for electric carsharing are a relatively recent phenomenon in Germany which can contribute to the sustainable transition of existing mobility regimes. This article aims to outline the status quo of electric carsharing cooperatives in Germany, explore the niche-conditions in which such projects can develop and analyze intermediate mechanisms which promote their geographical dissemination

Living labs are defined as both an approach and an arena for supporting experimentation in natural settings with a wide range of actors. In this article we explore the potential and limits of living labs for analysing and supporting the local transition of agri-food systems. We base on a bibliometric analysis and insights from our transdisciplinary research team’s experience with agroecological transition

The agency of incumbents has gained increasing attention in the study of transitions. Recent studies show that besides being inert and resistant to change, incumbents can also support transitions. We focus on the agency of a particular type of incumbent, grid operators. In several countries, these actors play an active role in institutional change in the energy domain. At the same time, they are engaging