Introduction to “Zooming in and out: Special issue on local transition governance”

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Highlights

  • Transitions can be addressed at local scales – below the city level.

  • A framework of shared ideas, objects and activities across local initiatives is developed.

  • A framework for analysis of actions as ephemeral or permanent is developed.

  • Developing networks is part of strategies to overcome limited resources at the local level.

  • Local case studies enable assessment of divergent contexts.

Abstract

Transitions research has paid increasing attention to the different spatial scales of transitions. This special section considers whether fundamental changes in structures, cultures and practices can be addressed at local or district scales. This focus on local scales also draws the attention to different types of local actors, their roles, activities, networks and interactions. Conceptual papers develop typologies addressing the dynamics of local transitions and suggest strategies for making transitions last. It is argued that local governance has limited personnel and financial resources to support transitions. Network development is one strategy for addressing this. Case studies confirm that local context is important in understanding transitions processes, along with their relationships to higher levels of governance.

Introduction

Initial research on sustainability transitions and governance was focused on dynamics and processes at the national level (Markard et al., 2012). Since then, transitions research has paid increasing attention to the spatial dimensions of transitions (Coenen et al., 2012; Coenen & Truffer, 2012; Hansen and Coenen, 2014). This literature not only points to the fact that transitions take place at specific places but also distinguishes spatial scales to analyse both their interdependence and interaction. Simultaneously, cities were recognised as critical to sustainability transitions (Bulkeley et al., 2011; Hodson and Marvin, 2010; Frantzeskaki et al., 2017; Loorbach et al., 2016). This move towards more localised analysis and action has a predecessor in global sustainability action: the Local Agenda 21-process, rooted in a UN conference in 1992. This triggered charters and guidelines for sustainability on a local level, instigated networks and subsequent processes using different framings (ICLEI, 2012; Wittmayer et al., 2016). This followed the argument that concrete actions that initiate and develop transitions are implemented in a local context. Building on this, the question raised by this special issue is whether and how fundamental changes in structures, cultures and practices can be addressed at such local scales, such as the district or municipality level, or which interactions and networks are needed at this level.

Section snippets

Setting the scene: the importance of zooming in and out

While much attention is given to the level of the city, smaller administrative or geographical structures are relatively neglected (Wittmayer et al., 2014; Schäpke et al., 2017 provide examples of analysis of these smaller structures). Cheung & Oßenbrügge (2020) also argue that city-driven transitions should further expand from the translation of ‘global problem, local solution’, to a more local-oriented focus. Similarly, in studying three Swedish municipalities, Gustafsson & Mignon (2020)

Contributions to this special issue

This Special Issue builds on this literature and its contributions critically engage with potentials and limitations of local configurations for furthering sustainability transitions. Together, they enrich our understanding of the role of communities and local governance institutions through both conceptual and empirical contribution on three cross-cutting topics: 1) local governance and networks of actors, 2) dynamics of transitions and 3) impact and limitations. In the following, we present

Conclusions

This special issue addresses issues of governance for sustainability transitions enacted at scales ‘closest to people’ or at a more local level than a city or region. It does so through building on and extending existing literature that considers the particular features of local transition initiatives and local policy. Three main observations across the contributions stand out.

Firstly, theories can be developed or applied to explain sustainability transitions processes at a local level. The two

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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