What does the agri-food systems transformation agenda mean for agricultural research organisations? Exploring organisational prototypes for uncertain futures

Global Food Security, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 40, P. 100733 - 100733

Published: Dec. 1, 2023

Agricultural Research Organisations (AROs) are being urgently called to provide solutions for agri-food system transformation. However, contrasting visions of how transformation should be achieved create difficult choices AROs. This paper reviews existing narratives build four scenarios future AROs: 1. Industry transition-oriented; 2. Technology mission-oriented; 3. The Community innovation-oriented; and 4. Facilitating transformative innovation-oriented. Their analysis uncovers possible risks trade-offs, suggests the need new hybrid organisational forms that incorporate elements from across scenarios. Besides, highlights given broad industry, policy, societal interests AROs, decisions about pathways cannot made unilaterally without broader discussion around shape aims innovation systems in which these organisations embedded.

Language: Английский

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Transformative or incumbent futures? How the future of mobility is imagined in sustainability transitions research

Futures, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 159, P. 103325 - 103325

Published: Jan. 21, 2024

How actors relate to the future has long been considered important in research on governance of transformations towards sustainability. Recent contributions have explored politics at play 'making' futures and forming collective expectations. Building concept socio-material incumbency integrating academic discussions which appreciate future-making, we consider expectations as a process through prevailing arrangements are challenged reproduced. We introduce 'scope incumbency', particular ideas about collectively deemed plausible shaped by power arrangements. Consequently, suggest it plays an underappreciated role reproduction locked-in systems. illustrate this perspective exploring how mobility imagined sustainability transition research. investigate explicitly articulate possible, and/or desirable alternative extent challenge reproduce hegemonic socio-technical orders. find that substantial portion limits scope around automobile-centric several ways.

Language: Английский

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Temporality in visions of desirable futures: Chronos and Kairos in the case of the circular economy on Gotland

Journal of Cleaner Production, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 439, P. 140733 - 140733

Published: Jan. 21, 2024

This article examines the role that temporality plays in imagining a desirable future for circular economy on Swedish island of Gotland. Through an exploration how temporal categories, including present and past Chronos & Kairos, shape our thinking about future, it contends offers unique opportunity to remake possibilities what can be. The argues articulating depictions ideas past, play constituent role. analysis case study Gotland, illustrates ways which different understandings are entangled with visions economy. yields valuable insights, revealing by embracing seizing Kairos moments, catalyse transformative future. aims contribute ongoing discussions highlighting importance considering dimensions sustainable futures.

Language: Английский

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Power in urban logistics: A comparative analysis of networks and policymaking in logistics sustainability governance

Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 51, P. 100845 - 100845

Published: April 19, 2024

This article unpacks the power relations in urban logistics to understand why cities follow different policy pathways sustainability. Drawing on literature sustainability transitions, we investigate key actors' framings of and assess how they leverage their positions pursue framing We utilize a mixed-method approach, with quantitative social network analysis semi-structured interviews, examine governance three Norwegian – Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim. Our findings challenge implicit understanding that private actors are most powerful governance. Local authorities, find, can strategically dispositional relational prioritize preferred sustainability, which is based compact climate-neutral cities. However, seek technical-rational interventions collaboration actors, typically form electrification vehicles, while remains an afterthought general planning.

Language: Английский

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The role of visions in sustainability transformations: Exploring tensions between the Agrarwende vanguard vision and an established sociotechnical imaginary of agriculture in Germany

Global Environmental Change, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 84, P. 102800 - 102800

Published: Jan. 1, 2024

Although much research recognises the importance of visions as key ingredients transformations to sustainability, it remains unclear how and why some become collectively binding. This paper uses lens sociotechnical imaginaries, i.e., shared, institutionally stabilised, publicly performed desirable futures, analyse so-called Agrarwende (agricultural transformation), a sustainability-oriented reform German agriculture based on vision transformative change towards organic farming. Methodologically, investigation draws published historical contemporary data sources for an in-depth case study using content analysis. It shows particular imaginary has shaped many decades explores three its constitutive elements - policy style, expertise, risk framing – conflict with vanguard Agrarwende. The findings suggest that these have reinforced one another in shaping trajectory agricultural system, thus co-producing strong socio-political order favour industrial at expense alternative set policies, supports agriculture. Taken together, highlight knowledge politics shape debates controversies about what is deemed future, stake, whom.

Language: Английский

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Complexity-aware principles for agri-food system interventions: Lessons from project encounters with complexity

Agricultural Systems, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 220, P. 104080 - 104080

Published: July 23, 2024

Complexity has long been recognised as a key feature of agri-food systems. Yet, it remains largely theoretical or poorly addressed in practice, hampering the potential international development projects to address agriculture and food-related challenges Global South. The paper identifies examines six sources complexity that can manifest projects, namely: unpredictability; path dependencies; context-specific dynamics; power relations; multiple temporal spatial scales. It then proposes tests system principles could be drawn upon more successfully navigate this complexity. aim is illustrate how these help respond changing circumstances unpredictable turns systems contexts different way, which flexibly embraces This flexibility essential an age uncertainty transformation. Comparative case study analysis implemented by CGIAR: aflatoxin control groundnuts Malawi (1), pigeonpea Eastern Southern Africa (2), sorghum beer Kenya (3), sweet for biofuel India (4), precooked beans Uganda (5), Smart Foods (6). aimed either increasing smallholder farmers' incomes addressing food nutrition security, both. They were specifically selected all they affected some complexity, hampered extents. makes cases relevant not only illustrating manifestations but also reflect on alternative strategies tackle it. studies reveals frustrate objectives interventions under several aspects. serves discuss navigated (within beyond cases) applying set proposed principles. are presented ways future avoid clinging what "known work" instead venture into powerful pathways change. following complexity-aware principle proposed: Welcome surprises openly trade-offs; Shun orthodoxies; Engage with context-specificity; Expose patterns power; Embrace lengthy nature change; Understand multi-scale (in terms space time) contexts. These used project designers implementors cope will inevitably encountered interventions, no longer ignored.

Language: Английский

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Governmentality and sociotechnical imaginary within the conservation-development nexus: China’s Great Yangtze River Protection Programme

Environmental Science & Policy, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 136, P. 56 - 66

Published: June 6, 2022

Language: Английский

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Pragmatic engagement with the wicked tourism problem of climate change through ‘soft’ transformative governance

Tourism Management, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 93, P. 104573 - 104573

Published: May 31, 2022

Language: Английский

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Transforming imaginations? Multiple dimensionalities and temporalities as vital complexities in transformations to sustainability

Global Environmental Change, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 82, P. 102741 - 102741

Published: Sept. 1, 2023

Through interlinked theoretical and empirical analysis, this paper explores some important but neglected questions concerning efforts to achieve sustainability. To what extents do currently dominant forms of academic study policy visions in field, satisfactorily address the full political depth scope vital complexities pathways for emerging social transformations? Are there dangers that common simplifications mainstream ways thinking about transformation, inadvertently help invisibly reproduce entrenched patterns privilege power drive focal problems unsustainability? In particular, does a 'monothetic' focus on circumscribed sites or sectoral formations with notionally few clear-cut dimensions distinction before after, risk missing more multiple messy 'polythetic' dimensionalities which can hide? What are implications assumptions change proceed 'monotonically' – neatly cumulatively particular direction, if real world transformations actually unfold according plural, undulating unruly 'non-monotonic' temporalities? order investigate these questions, employs concept sociotechnical imaginaries explore constituting contrasting understandings 'urban transformations' Kenya 'the nuclear renaissance' UK. Q method in-depth interpretive analysis used test relationships between imagined their unfoldings over time. The findings suggest current approaches may indeed unduly simplify dynamics play out potentially practical implications.

Language: Английский

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Scrutinising commodity hype in imaginaries of the Swedish green steel transition

Environment and Planning E Nature and Space, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 7(4), P. 1844 - 1867

Published: March 14, 2024

The technological push for hydrogen-based steel production has become a flagship project of the Swedish state advancing its global environmental leadership and becoming world's first fossil free welfare state. new process potential to drastically cut emissions in heavy polluting industry. plans also entail drastic upscale production, energy iron ore consumption risk increasing existing pressures on Indigenous Sami land, local communities, biodiversity. This article sets out investigate frontier-making function green imaginaries contribute debates sacrificed spaces extraction commodity demand. speaks call critical turn sustainability transitions literature by introducing concept hype scrutinise material consequences growth-based transition imaginaries. builds narrative analysis government, industry, company actors’ visions future. illustrates how sociotechnical are constructed enable particular industrial futures over other pathways. We show that imaginary steel, fuelled through hype, serves advance growth industry while effectively cancelling democratic nuance non-extractive alternatives. findings illustrate importance pluralising ensure inclusive pathways discursively dismantle fail break with paradigm.

Language: Английский

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