The aim of this WaterWarmth project Work Package 6.1 report is to present a number of relevant frameworks available to analyse and/or assess the governance of current heating systems and future energy system innovation, in particular with a focus on aquathermal energy (AE) systems. At the basis of the report was a broad survey of the academic and other literature by project researchers on ways to conceptualise the greater use of AE energy systems in the European Union. To keep the report succinct, and based on discussions by WaterWarmth project researchers, we have decided to present a combination of theoretical approaches to frame and understand AE system transitions instead of the broad collection of frameworks and theories that exist today. These are the Multi-Level Perspective, Strategic Niche Management, Contextual Interaction Theory, the Governance of Change and Community Energy Systems. The report contributes to the project by providing a strategic way to understand renewable energy transition processes, and more specifically, pathways for how AE systems can play a more significant role in a renewable energy system transition in the North Sea Region and beyond. The result is a heuristic that allows practitioners to discover how AE system developments in particular places can be viewed in a broader energy system transition context, the measures that may be needed to guide the transition process, and to gain a deeper understanding about the motivations, cognitions and resources of the actors involved in the energy transition process. To demonstrate the proposed frameworks, we exemplify using two case studies: AE system development at the household in Sweden, and AE transitions in the Fryslân region, in the Netherlands. For the Swedish case we use the Multi-level Perspective (MLP) framework to provide the background of the niche, landscape level and the socio-technical regime which illustrate the influence of policies and regulations, as well as technologies and markets. For the Netherlands case, we place a stronger emphasis on Contextual Interaction Theory (CIT) framework to analyse how the different actors and their characteristics such as motivations, cognitions and resources influence the interaction process in the planning and implementation of AE systems projects. Using the CIT, we are also able to assess how the specific, structural and wider contexts influence the implementation process as well as how the actors interact with each other. Each case provides a unique structuring, both enablers and hindrances, of the institutional and governance dynamics for AE system innovations in their respective countries. Extending from the exemplary studies, we lastly discuss each of the cases as well as broader insights gained when using the approach, and what it can mean for broader AE system transitions in the European Union. This report is intended for multiple audiences including but not limited to practitioners aiming to develop AE systems, academics interested in assessing governance processes around AE system development, policy-makers interested in policies and decision-making to promote AE system development. @en

Decarbonization creates a global public good but imposes costs on specific communities such as those employed in the fossil fuel supply chain. “Just Transition” (JT) policies that compensate cost-bearing communities are expected to build political support for decarbonization. In developing countries, JT policies are often financed by foreign aid and managed by governmental actors. To assess public support for JT, we identify four policy types, depending on whether they target individuals or the local government or community, and how quickly individuals receive benefits. These are: individual compensation (individual, quick), financial support to local governments (community, quick), individual reskilling (individual, delayed), and upgrading local infrastructure (community, delayed). To assess public preferences about JT policies, we focus on South Africa which has a large coal mining sector. Our in-depth interviews with 51 coal miners, Eskom power plant workers, and community members in Mpumalanga province reveal that most interviewees favor monetary compensation which provides direct support to individuals in a short period of time. Moreover, given the low trust in the government, interviewees do not want government or the labor unions to administer the JT funds. Instead, they favor independent actors, such as NGOs and the judiciary, to oversee JT disbursal.@en

This chapter provides an overview of energy poverty in South Africa through a sample of electrified low-income households in one municipality located in the heart of the country's coal region. Despite democracy and the many policies in place to redress the injustices of the Apartheid regime, the country continues to have extremely high levels of poverty, energy poverty, inequality, and unemployment.

Even though 87% of the population has access to electricity connections, most households cannot afford to use sufficient electricity to meet their basic energy needs, and almost half of all households are considered energy poor. The challenge is not just about access to electricity but also about affordability. Many of the policies currently in place to alleviate energy poverty and poverty have not yielded the results hoped for. This is understood within the framework of an energy-intensive political economy that has been built around coal and coal fired electricity production.@en

Many in the Global South and some in the Global North cannot afford clean and sustainable energy, and many live in a state of energy poverty. A just energy transition is a chance for economies to start again with a clean slate and do things differently. In the Global South, where many cities are growing and where generation is inadequate, the opportunities abound. This policy brief argues that energy poverty and access must be brought boldly into the Just Transition debate. Only then is change possible. The brief offers an overview of current understanding of what constitutes a just energy transition and what is meant by energy poverty and access by giving a snapshot of the European Union and Sub-Saharan Africa context. The brief concludes with outlining some of the policy gaps.@en

Although enterprises in the informal food sector require energy to transform, cook and process food, energy-use patterns in this sector are not well understood by policymakers and the local-level authorities who regulate their trading activities. This paper reviews relevant literature and presents empirical data collected in Rwanda, Senegal and South Africa on the use of traditional and modern energy sources by informal food sector operators. Our sample includes male- and female-operated enterprises in the urban centres of three African countries where the informal food sector is important, not only for providing the convenience of affordable and readily prepared meals, but also as a source of income for women and men in developing countries. Multiple fuel-use and energy-stacking strategies are common among informal food enterprises and policy needs to acknowledge this if it is to intervene in ways that will benefit both enterprises and regulators.@en