Suchergebnisse

Local governments are increasingly taking the initiative in environmental governance. But can they make any difference in addressing current environmental challenges, which are becoming more and more global in scope? This PhD thesis explores and analyses the outcomes of proactive initiatives in the field of building energy efficiency, and the governance approaches taken. It addresses outcomes both in the socio-technical system that constitutes the building, and in the institutional sphere. The overarching objective is to contribute to knowledge on the role of local initiatives in addressing current environmental challenges. The thesis focuses on a number of governance initiatives in the form of policies or strategic approaches in urban development projects in Sweden, and one in Denmark. The primary focus has been on proactive initiatives for enhancing the energy efficiency of new buildings. Through a case study approach, the research is based on a combination of methods for data collection, including document studies, interviews and participant observation to analyse the governance approaches in local governance initiatives and the different types of outcomes. A key finding is that the local governance initiatives investigated have played a role in environmental governance through outcomes across socio-technical systems and institutional spheres. The combination of different modes of governing, including authoritative and enabling modes of governing as well as governing by provision, was important for fostering the construction of more energy efficient buildings. Another important element in these governing processes was the active governing throughout the development process. In terms of institutional change, it was shown that relation-building and knowledge advancement were fostered successfully, while it was more difficult to actually mobilise for change. The research also showed how local initiatives are shaped by institutions at higher tiers of government and that the local initiatives also contributed to shaping institutions at the national level. Based on this, the thesis argues for national policy frameworks, which better capture the benefits of local frontrunners.

Local governments increasingly initiate measures addressing global sustainability challenges, so-called local governance experiments. But the knowledge about their actual outcome is limited. Responding to this gap, this paper provides an assessment of a local governance experiment in the form of a programme for sustainable buildings in Malmö, Sweden, focusing on its energy components. The study assesses the initiative by studying all new multi-residential units constructed in Malmö and analysing their performance along with programme applicability. Findings indicate the effectiveness of the programme, and further improved performance when the programme was combined with a dialogue process together with developers in a showcase area of Malmö. The majority of developers estimated the costs for following the programme as limited. The findings contradict the view that local initiatives addressing global sustainability challenges are merely rhetorical. However, the partly insufficient implementation risks undermining the trust-building function of local governance experimets.

Municipalities are key actors in their role as planners for sustainable urban development, and also have the responsibility to transform ambitious national and global goals and visions into local practices (McCormick et al., 2013). The role of municipalities in relation to enhancing sustainable consumption patterns has been increasingly highlighted by policy-makers and in research. Creating sustainable societies and shaping their consumption patterns has become an everyday activity for municipalities. This is also the case for the Nordic countries and not least for Sweden, which will be used as an example in this Chapter. The Nordic countries have the ambition of becoming sustainable leaders and enabling sustainable consumption (Mont et al., 2013).