André Schaffrin

IFOK

The intensively discussed term transformation refers to the comprehensive restructuring of processes and behaviour in order to address societal challenges posed by far-reaching changes in energy, transport, production and agricultural systems. Since such complex transformations are always accompanied by uncertainties about their effects and consequ...

"Land ist, gemessen an den vielfältigen Nutzungsansprüchen, eine knappe Ressource. Dementsprechend ist Land nicht nur wertvoll, sondern auch teuer – und wird immer teurer. Diese Verteuerung verstärkt den ökonomischen Druck auf die Landnutzung, trägt dazu bei, dass Effizienz und Erträge weiter gesteigert werden müssen, und befeuert den strukturellen...

"Landnutzungskonflikte entwickeln sich typischerweise zwischen verschiedenen Nutzergruppen. Klassische Konfliktlinien verlaufen zum Beispiel zwischen Landwirtschaft und Naturschutz, zwischen Tourismus und Energiewende, zwischen Siedlungsdruck und Erholungsraum. Und nicht selten sind mehrere dieser Bereiche und ihre Ansprüche an Land und Landschaft...

This contribution reviews three major perspectives on local transition processes from the economic, social, and political lens. We discuss the major dimensions, concepts, and complementarities of the three approaches—the regional innovation systems’ approach, the sustainable communities perspective, and the local governance concept. Based on the di...

Lebenswertes Wohnen gehört zu den menschlichen Grundbedürfnissen und beeinflusst nicht nur unser körperliches, soziales und materielles Wohlbefinden; wir wenden auch einen Großteil unserer verfügbaren Resourcen zur Gestaltung und Verbesserung unserer Wohnsituation auf (Grösche 2010; Healy 2003; Sardianou 2007). Die Bedeutung von Haushaltsenergie ze...

Die Energiewende und mit ihr die steigenden Strompreise haben das Thema Energiearmut für eine kurze Zeit ins Rampenlicht gerückt, die Diskussion um Energiekosten und soziale Ungleichheit auf die Tagesordnung gebracht und in Forschung und Praxis eine Reihe von Pilotprojekten angestoßen. Dabei zeigt sich, dass eine solche Debatte mehr Facetten ha...

One central aim of climate change mitigation in the European Union is to reduce energy consumption in the housing sector. In order to ensure effectiveness of policies targeting household energy conservation, it is important to investigate existing energy practices of different social groups. This article describes and explains energy practices in t...

Comparative policy studies face a number of methodological challenges where conceptualization of the object of comparison—policy output—is the most fundamental. On the basis of three common approaches of the study of policy output, we reconsider this widely applied concept and propose a refined measure as a function of both density (number of polic...

Comparative policy studies face a number of methodological challenges where conceptualization of the object of comparison—policy output—is the most fundamental. On the basis of three common approaches of the study of policy output, we reconsider this widely applied concept and propose a refined measure as a function of both density (number of polic...

This paper examines policy change in climate mitigation and investigates the role of policy innovations in radically altering a policy portfolio. We analyze whether policy innovations are merely symbolic or truly radical and if they contribute to ‘tipping’ policy portfolios towards a new instrumental logic. We study policy innovations as part of po...

The International Handbook on Social Policy and the Environment reviews debates concerning poverty, inequalities, social distribution, social rights, taxation, healthcare, education, water and energy policies to examine the relevance and importance of climate change to social policies and welfare reform. Environmental change is central to the glob...

International agreements have led to an increase of national climate policies. The selection and analysis of policy instruments are mainly oriented at their technical effectiveness and financial feasibility while social sustainability plays a minor role. As a consequence, the impact of climate policies on individuals’ life situation is largely unkn...

What are the social consequences of climate mitigation policies? International agreements and activities of international organizations have led to an increase in national policies to mitigate climate change. The question of who has to pay the costs of intensive public programs for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, however, is mainly addressed o...

Environmental concern is a highly relevant concept in the context of environmental change and increasing demand for political regulation of environmental protection. In order to prevent climate change, loss in global biodiversity or other highly critical environmental issues, we need to understand why (and why not) citizens support environmental po...

Recently, the Third IPPC Assessment Report claimed that the national effort of one country to address climate change depends on its economic, institutional, structural and cultural capacities. The European Union, in contrast, considers only economic wealth of a Member State as a criterion for the planned EU Effort Sharing Decision within the EU Cli...