Publications by category
Journal articles
Hoolohan C, Soutar I, Suckling J, Druckman A, Larkin A, McLachlan C (2019). Stepping-up innovations in the water–energy–food nexus: a case study of anaerobic digestion in the UK.
Geographical Journal,
185(4), 391-405.
Abstract:
Stepping-up innovations in the water–energy–food nexus: a case study of anaerobic digestion in the UK
The information, practices and views in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG). © 2018 the Authors. The Geographical Journal published by John Wiley. &. Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers). Grand societal challenges such as climate change, poverty and biodiversity loss call for rapid and radical changes to systems of production and consumption. Consequently, there is a growing interest in the dynamics of innovation, both social and technical, to accelerate innovation diffusion so as to increase the possibility of a step-change or large-scale transition. Research on the water–energy–food nexus adds an additional dimension to existing discussions, calling for transitions that recognise the sustainability challenges facing three major resource domains, and the synergies and tensions involved in their management. This paper examines anaerobic digestion (AD) – an example of innovation with potential benefits across the water–energy–food nexus – to understand the conditions that influence the rate of AD implementation and the achievement of its potential multi-sectoral benefits across the water–energy–food nexus. Interview data regarding 15 AD plants are examined alongside complementary data from interviews and workshops using the Technological Innovation Systems framework. This framework provides an analytical structure through which the processes that enable and constrain the implementation of AD in the UK can be examined, enabling the identification of potential mechanisms to support AD's wider and more effective deployment. The findings call for recognition of the unintended consequences of sectoral support mechanisms for technological adaptation, and consequent performance of AD in other resource domains and call for greater integration between policy mechanisms to enable AD to perform across the nexus. They also highlight a need to assimilate knowledge from multiple sources (including site-specific understanding gained from experimentation) to enhance the base on which policy and decision-making occurs. These findings contribute to existing literature on sustainable transitions by examining the complexities of multi-sectoral resource management in the context of nexus research.
Abstract.
Full text.
Judson E, Fitch-Roy O, Pownall T, Bray R, Poulter H, Soutar I, Lowes R, Connor P, Britton J, Woodman B, et al (2019). The centre cannot (always) hold: examining pathways towards energy system de-centralisation.
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,
118Abstract:
The centre cannot (always) hold: examining pathways towards energy system de-centralisation
'Energy decentralisation' means many things to many people. Among the confusion of definitions and practices that may be characterised as decentralisation, three broad causal narratives are commonly (implicitly or explicitly) invoked. These narratives imply that the process of decentralisation: i) will result in appropriate changes to rules and institutions, ii) will be more democratic and iii) is directly and causally linked to energy system decarbonisation. The principal aim of this paper is to critically examine these narratives. By conceptualising energy decentralisation as a distinct class of sociotechnical transition pathway, we present a comparative analysis of energy decentralisation in Cornwall, South West UK, the French island of Ushant and the National Electricity Market in Australia. We show that, while energy decentralisation is often strongly correlated with institutional change, increasing citizen agency in the energy system, and enhanced environmental performance, these trends cannot be assumed as given. Indeed, some decentralisation pathways may entrench incumbent actors' interests or block rapid decarbonisation. In particular, we show how institutional context is a key determinant of the link between energy decentralisation and normative goals such as democratisation and decarbonisation. While institutional theory suggests that changes in rules and institutions are often incremental and path-dependent, the dense legal and regulatory arrangements that develop around the electricity sector seem particularly resistant to adaptive change. Consequently, policymakers seeking to pursue normative goals such as democratisation or decarbonisation through energy decentralisation need to look beyond technology towards the rules, norms and laws that constitute the energy governance system.
Abstract.
Full text.
Hoolohan C, Larkin A, McLachlan C, Falconer R, Soutar I, Suckling J, Varga L, Haltas I, Druckman A, Lumbroso D, et al (2018). Engaging stakeholders in research to address water–energy–food (WEF) nexus challenges.
Sustainability Science,
13(5), 1415-1426.
Abstract:
Engaging stakeholders in research to address water–energy–food (WEF) nexus challenges
© 2018, the Author(s). The water–energy–food (WEF) nexus has become a popular, and potentially powerful, frame through which to analyse interactions and interdependencies between these three systems. Though the case for transdisciplinary research in this space has been made, the extent of stakeholder engagement in research remains limited with stakeholders most commonly incorporated in research as end-users. Yet, stakeholders interact with nexus issues in a variety of ways, consequently there is much that collaboration might offer to develop nexus research and enhance its application. This paper outlines four aspects of nexus research and considers the value and potential challenges for transdisciplinary research in each. We focus on assessing and visualising nexus systems; understanding governance and capacity building; the importance of scale; and the implications of future change. The paper then proceeds to describe a novel mixed-method study that deeply integrates stakeholder knowledge with insights from multiple disciplines. We argue that mixed-method research designs—in this case orientated around a number of cases studies—are best suited to understanding and addressing real-world nexus challenges, with their inevitable complex, non-linear system characteristics. Moreover, integrating multiple forms of knowledge in the manner described in this paper enables research to assess the potential for, and processes of, scaling-up innovations in the nexus space, to contribute insights to policy and decision making.
Abstract.
Full text.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2017). Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system.
Energy Research and Social Science,
35, 132-139.
Abstract:
Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd Issues of societal engagement in the energy system pervade both the study and the doing of energy policy. In both realms, narratives as persuasive ‘vehicles of meaning’ help us both to make sense of society's role in past and current energy systems, and shape these roles in future energy systems. However, our eagerness to simplify complex histories and unwritten futures means that the narratives we create are often reliant on assumptions. This has implications for the degree to which narratives can find pragmatism, and thus be valuable, to a wide range of stakeholders. Drawing both on historic accounts of societal engagement in energy systems alongside emerging discourses around future energy systems, this paper offers several points of caution for the use of narratives of engagement. In terms of historic narratives, these relate to hindsight bias, predictability, and normative positioning, the combination of which depict histories of engagement as retrospectively obvious, and falsely suggest a controllability of past events. In terms of forward-looking narratives, while optimism and ambiguity play key roles in garnering interest in visions among stakeholders, they also mean that narratives vary in their relevance, and thus value to, different stakeholders. Fundamentally, narratives must find legitimacy in the actors they purport to recruit, and must thus simultaneously attend to regulative, normative and cognitive aspects of energy system engagement.
Abstract.
Full text.
Rowan JS, Carwardine J, Duck RW, Bragg OM, Black AR, Cutler MEJ, Soutar I, Boon PJ (2006). Development of a technique for Lake habitat survey (LHS) with applications for the European Union Water Framework Directive.
AQUATIC CONSERVATION-MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS,
16(6), 637-657.
Author URL.
Chapters
Soutar I (2018). Community Energy as a site for Social Innovation. In Backhaus J, Genus A, Lorek S, Vadovics E, Wittmayer J (Eds.) Social Innovation and Sustainable Consumption: Research and Action for Societal Transformation.
Britton J, Soutar I (2013). Energy Security Policy in Britain: Markets, Complexity and Challenges. In Mitchell C, Watson J, Britton J (Eds.)
New Challenges in Energy Security the UK in a Multipolar World, Palgrave Macmillan, 68-91.
Abstract:
Energy Security Policy in Britain: Markets, Complexity and Challenges
Abstract.
Soutar I, Whiting J (2013). Energy security policy in Britain: Markets, complexity and challenges. In Mitchell C, Watson J, Whiting J (Eds.) New Challenges in Energy Security: the UK in a Multipolar World, London: Palgrave MacMillan.
Conferences
Soutar I (2019). Emergence and control in UK energy system democratisation. in Search of Good Energy Policy.
Soutar I (2018). Energy System Change: Insights for the Circular Economy?. Circular Economy Disruptions: Past, Present and Future. 8th - 10th Jun 2018.
Author URL.
Soutar I (2018). Understanding innovation at the Water-Energy-Food nexus. 9th International Sustainability Transitions Conference. 12th - 14th Jun 2018.
Haltas I, Suckling J, Soutar I, Druckman A, Varga L (2017). Anaerobic digestion: a prime solution for water, energy and food nexus challenges.
Abstract:
Anaerobic digestion: a prime solution for water, energy and food nexus challenges
Abstract.
Soutar I (2017). Balancing diversity and coherence in innovation space-making at the water-energy-food nexus. Energy-water-climate change nexus (EWCN) in a transitional economy: sustainability and resilience. 22nd - 26th May 2017.
Soutar I (2017). Conditions for transformation in the water-energy-food nexus. Transformations 2017: Transformations in Practice. 30th Aug - 1st Sep 2017.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2017). Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system. AAG Annual Meeting.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2016). Grappling with Wickedness: the articulation of WEF nexus governance in the UK. RGS Annual Conference.
Soutar I (2015). The role of social capital in energy systems transformation: Insights from community energy. SCORAI workshop: ‘Beyond’ Transition? Understanding & Achieving Sustainable Consumption through Social Innovation.
Abstract:
The role of social capital in energy systems transformation: Insights from community energy
Abstract.
Author URL.
Soutar I (2015). The use (and abuse?) of evidence in the development of the UK Community Energy Strategy. the interface between sustainability research and policy. 26th - 27th Jan 2015.
Soutar I (2014). Is small-scale beautiful (and how beautiful?): Understanding the role of community energy within the wider UK energy system. Earth Systems Governance.
Soutar I (2013). What role for small-scale energy? Understanding the value of challenging large-scale lock-in. Facing the Future Symposium. 10th - 12th Apr 2013.
Rowan JS, Soutar I, Phillips GE (2006). Morphometric analysis of UK lake systems as a compliance tool for the European Water Framework Directive.
Author URL.
Reports
Judson E, Soutar I, Mitchell C (2020).
Governance Challenges Emerging from Energy Digitalisation. EPG Discussion Paper: EPG2002. Author URL.
Publications by year
2020
Judson E, Soutar I, Mitchell C (2020).
Governance Challenges Emerging from Energy Digitalisation. EPG Discussion Paper: EPG2002. Author URL.
2019
Soutar I (2019). Emergence and control in UK energy system democratisation. in Search of Good Energy Policy.
Hoolohan C, Soutar I, Suckling J, Druckman A, Larkin A, McLachlan C (2019). Stepping-up innovations in the water–energy–food nexus: a case study of anaerobic digestion in the UK.
Geographical Journal,
185(4), 391-405.
Abstract:
Stepping-up innovations in the water–energy–food nexus: a case study of anaerobic digestion in the UK
The information, practices and views in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG). © 2018 the Authors. The Geographical Journal published by John Wiley. &. Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers). Grand societal challenges such as climate change, poverty and biodiversity loss call for rapid and radical changes to systems of production and consumption. Consequently, there is a growing interest in the dynamics of innovation, both social and technical, to accelerate innovation diffusion so as to increase the possibility of a step-change or large-scale transition. Research on the water–energy–food nexus adds an additional dimension to existing discussions, calling for transitions that recognise the sustainability challenges facing three major resource domains, and the synergies and tensions involved in their management. This paper examines anaerobic digestion (AD) – an example of innovation with potential benefits across the water–energy–food nexus – to understand the conditions that influence the rate of AD implementation and the achievement of its potential multi-sectoral benefits across the water–energy–food nexus. Interview data regarding 15 AD plants are examined alongside complementary data from interviews and workshops using the Technological Innovation Systems framework. This framework provides an analytical structure through which the processes that enable and constrain the implementation of AD in the UK can be examined, enabling the identification of potential mechanisms to support AD's wider and more effective deployment. The findings call for recognition of the unintended consequences of sectoral support mechanisms for technological adaptation, and consequent performance of AD in other resource domains and call for greater integration between policy mechanisms to enable AD to perform across the nexus. They also highlight a need to assimilate knowledge from multiple sources (including site-specific understanding gained from experimentation) to enhance the base on which policy and decision-making occurs. These findings contribute to existing literature on sustainable transitions by examining the complexities of multi-sectoral resource management in the context of nexus research.
Abstract.
Full text.
Judson E, Fitch-Roy O, Pownall T, Bray R, Poulter H, Soutar I, Lowes R, Connor P, Britton J, Woodman B, et al (2019). The centre cannot (always) hold: examining pathways towards energy system de-centralisation.
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,
118Abstract:
The centre cannot (always) hold: examining pathways towards energy system de-centralisation
'Energy decentralisation' means many things to many people. Among the confusion of definitions and practices that may be characterised as decentralisation, three broad causal narratives are commonly (implicitly or explicitly) invoked. These narratives imply that the process of decentralisation: i) will result in appropriate changes to rules and institutions, ii) will be more democratic and iii) is directly and causally linked to energy system decarbonisation. The principal aim of this paper is to critically examine these narratives. By conceptualising energy decentralisation as a distinct class of sociotechnical transition pathway, we present a comparative analysis of energy decentralisation in Cornwall, South West UK, the French island of Ushant and the National Electricity Market in Australia. We show that, while energy decentralisation is often strongly correlated with institutional change, increasing citizen agency in the energy system, and enhanced environmental performance, these trends cannot be assumed as given. Indeed, some decentralisation pathways may entrench incumbent actors' interests or block rapid decarbonisation. In particular, we show how institutional context is a key determinant of the link between energy decentralisation and normative goals such as democratisation and decarbonisation. While institutional theory suggests that changes in rules and institutions are often incremental and path-dependent, the dense legal and regulatory arrangements that develop around the electricity sector seem particularly resistant to adaptive change. Consequently, policymakers seeking to pursue normative goals such as democratisation or decarbonisation through energy decentralisation need to look beyond technology towards the rules, norms and laws that constitute the energy governance system.
Abstract.
Full text.
2018
Soutar I (2018). Community Energy as a site for Social Innovation. In Backhaus J, Genus A, Lorek S, Vadovics E, Wittmayer J (Eds.) Social Innovation and Sustainable Consumption: Research and Action for Societal Transformation.
Soutar I (2018). Energy System Change: Insights for the Circular Economy?. Circular Economy Disruptions: Past, Present and Future. 8th - 10th Jun 2018.
Author URL.
Hoolohan C, Larkin A, McLachlan C, Falconer R, Soutar I, Suckling J, Varga L, Haltas I, Druckman A, Lumbroso D, et al (2018). Engaging stakeholders in research to address water–energy–food (WEF) nexus challenges.
Sustainability Science,
13(5), 1415-1426.
Abstract:
Engaging stakeholders in research to address water–energy–food (WEF) nexus challenges
© 2018, the Author(s). The water–energy–food (WEF) nexus has become a popular, and potentially powerful, frame through which to analyse interactions and interdependencies between these three systems. Though the case for transdisciplinary research in this space has been made, the extent of stakeholder engagement in research remains limited with stakeholders most commonly incorporated in research as end-users. Yet, stakeholders interact with nexus issues in a variety of ways, consequently there is much that collaboration might offer to develop nexus research and enhance its application. This paper outlines four aspects of nexus research and considers the value and potential challenges for transdisciplinary research in each. We focus on assessing and visualising nexus systems; understanding governance and capacity building; the importance of scale; and the implications of future change. The paper then proceeds to describe a novel mixed-method study that deeply integrates stakeholder knowledge with insights from multiple disciplines. We argue that mixed-method research designs—in this case orientated around a number of cases studies—are best suited to understanding and addressing real-world nexus challenges, with their inevitable complex, non-linear system characteristics. Moreover, integrating multiple forms of knowledge in the manner described in this paper enables research to assess the potential for, and processes of, scaling-up innovations in the nexus space, to contribute insights to policy and decision making.
Abstract.
Full text.
Soutar I (2018). Understanding innovation at the Water-Energy-Food nexus. 9th International Sustainability Transitions Conference. 12th - 14th Jun 2018.
2017
Haltas I, Suckling J, Soutar I, Druckman A, Varga L (2017). Anaerobic digestion: a prime solution for water, energy and food nexus challenges.
Abstract:
Anaerobic digestion: a prime solution for water, energy and food nexus challenges
Abstract.
Soutar I (2017). Balancing diversity and coherence in innovation space-making at the water-energy-food nexus. Energy-water-climate change nexus (EWCN) in a transitional economy: sustainability and resilience. 22nd - 26th May 2017.
Soutar I (2017). Conditions for transformation in the water-energy-food nexus. Transformations 2017: Transformations in Practice. 30th Aug - 1st Sep 2017.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2017). Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system.
Energy Research and Social Science,
35, 132-139.
Abstract:
Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd Issues of societal engagement in the energy system pervade both the study and the doing of energy policy. In both realms, narratives as persuasive ‘vehicles of meaning’ help us both to make sense of society's role in past and current energy systems, and shape these roles in future energy systems. However, our eagerness to simplify complex histories and unwritten futures means that the narratives we create are often reliant on assumptions. This has implications for the degree to which narratives can find pragmatism, and thus be valuable, to a wide range of stakeholders. Drawing both on historic accounts of societal engagement in energy systems alongside emerging discourses around future energy systems, this paper offers several points of caution for the use of narratives of engagement. In terms of historic narratives, these relate to hindsight bias, predictability, and normative positioning, the combination of which depict histories of engagement as retrospectively obvious, and falsely suggest a controllability of past events. In terms of forward-looking narratives, while optimism and ambiguity play key roles in garnering interest in visions among stakeholders, they also mean that narratives vary in their relevance, and thus value to, different stakeholders. Fundamentally, narratives must find legitimacy in the actors they purport to recruit, and must thus simultaneously attend to regulative, normative and cognitive aspects of energy system engagement.
Abstract.
Full text.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2017). Towards pragmatic narratives of societal engagement in the UK energy system. AAG Annual Meeting.
2016
Soutar I (2016). From local to global value: the transformational nature of community energy.
Abstract:
From local to global value: the transformational nature of community energy
The UK energy system has in the past been characterised by the ownership and control of large-scale supply technologies by corporate entities. It has become apparent however that such structures are ill suited to addressing contemporary energy challenges of decarbonisation, energy security and affordability. Moreover, their resistance to change means that the current system is fundamentally inconsistent with the need for energy system change.
the advent of affordable renewable energy however, particularly at small-scale, offers new prospects for addressing these energy challenges. In particular, they present an opportunity for greater societal engagement in the energy system, not least as owners and managers of energy assets, but also as stakeholders with interest and influence in the energy system more generally. Within the context of greater citizen engagement in energy, community energy has developed in the UK as an organised means for “collective action to purchase, manage and generate energy” (DECC, 2014b). Such collective action is complimented by progressively broad engagement by individuals in the energy system as investors and prosumers, rather than solely consumers. This thesis responds to a need to better understand the role and value of community energy, and wider societal engagement more generally, within the wider energy system.
Taking a mixed-methods approach, this thesis contends that community energy has the potential to have significant impacts at both local and national scales. Social, economic and environmental impacts of a specific community energy project are evidenced to illustrate the breadth and scale of potential impacts at the local level. Broader analysis of the community energy movement, and of ‘small-scale energy’ more generally is suggestive of the potential for such approaches to be transformative in terms of overcoming system inertia. In particular, the energy system is undergoing a process of democratisation, whereby power, wealth and value is gradually distributed among society. A key role for policymakers then is to consider the strategic importance of democratisation.
Abstract.
Author URL.
Soutar I, Mitchell C (2016). Grappling with Wickedness: the articulation of WEF nexus governance in the UK. RGS Annual Conference.
2015
Soutar I (2015). The role of social capital in energy systems transformation: Insights from community energy. SCORAI workshop: ‘Beyond’ Transition? Understanding & Achieving Sustainable Consumption through Social Innovation.
Abstract:
The role of social capital in energy systems transformation: Insights from community energy
Abstract.
Author URL.
Soutar I (2015). The use (and abuse?) of evidence in the development of the UK Community Energy Strategy. the interface between sustainability research and policy. 26th - 27th Jan 2015.
2014
Soutar I (2014). Is small-scale beautiful (and how beautiful?): Understanding the role of community energy within the wider UK energy system. Earth Systems Governance.
2013
Britton J, Soutar I (2013). Energy Security Policy in Britain: Markets, Complexity and Challenges. In Mitchell C, Watson J, Britton J (Eds.)
New Challenges in Energy Security the UK in a Multipolar World, Palgrave Macmillan, 68-91.
Abstract:
Energy Security Policy in Britain: Markets, Complexity and Challenges
Abstract.
Soutar I, Whiting J (2013). Energy security policy in Britain: Markets, complexity and challenges. In Mitchell C, Watson J, Whiting J (Eds.) New Challenges in Energy Security: the UK in a Multipolar World, London: Palgrave MacMillan.
Soutar I (2013). What role for small-scale energy? Understanding the value of challenging large-scale lock-in. Facing the Future Symposium. 10th - 12th Apr 2013.
2006
Rowan JS, Carwardine J, Duck RW, Bragg OM, Black AR, Cutler MEJ, Soutar I, Boon PJ (2006). Development of a technique for Lake habitat survey (LHS) with applications for the European Union Water Framework Directive.
AQUATIC CONSERVATION-MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS,
16(6), 637-657.
Author URL.
Rowan JS, Soutar I, Phillips GE (2006). Morphometric analysis of UK lake systems as a compliance tool for the European Water Framework Directive.
Author URL.