Assistant Professor at the Environmental Policy Group, Wageningen University
Studied at the University of Utrecht (BSc), Wageningen University (MSc) and The University of Sydney (PhD) and Chiang Mai University (PhD cotutelle). Supervisors: Arthur Mol Phone: +31 (0)6 30 44 71 22 Address: Hollandseweg 1, 6706 KN Wageningen, the Netherlands
Handbook of Transitions to Energy and Climate Security, Nov 25, 2016
This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy cons... more This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy consuming country. As an emerging economy in Southeast Asia with a democratic history, albeit one afflicted by persistent authoritarianism, environmental activists and civil society have played a significant role in the development of public energy discourses and, to a lesser extent, government policies. Governance in Thailand tends to oscillate between direct military rule and more competitive elected governments. A coup in May 2014 resulted in the current military regime, which appears unlikely to surrender power to democratic forces anytime soon. Nevertheless, energy policy over the last two decades has remained largely impervious to changes in government, although much of the good work on developing renewable energy markets is unraveling under the current government.
The outline of a theory of practice by Shove et al. (2012) suggests that the ways in which elemen... more The outline of a theory of practice by Shove et al. (2012) suggests that the ways in which elements of practice – meanings, competences and things – circulate and link, help explain how practices are brought about, how they evolve, diffuse, and die. Shove et al. (2012: 22) suggest that by paying attention to the trajectories of elements, and to the making and breaking of links between them, it is possible to describe and analyse change and stability without prioritizing either agency or structure. This view has been employed in various studies that identify elements of practice and examine how these elements circulate (e.g. Shove & Pantzar, 2005; Gram-Hanssen, 2011; Shove et al., 2014).
Rapidly changing situations allow for insight into how infrastructures trigger the emergence, dis... more Rapidly changing situations allow for insight into how infrastructures trigger the emergence, disappearance and transformation of specific practices, and of how these developments are, in turn, important for infrastructural configurations. This chapter explores features of this infrastructure-practice dynamic through two village-level case studies of rural electrification in Thailand and Laos. In both cases, different ‘layers’ of electricity infrastructure entered the villages in time frames of a few decades. In-depth fieldwork provides insight into how infrastructures, practices and demand co-evolved in these two cases. Specifically, the chapter examines the emergence and development of new and ‘electrified’ practices, such as watching television and lighting. The cases illustrate that the consequences of electrification are sometimes mediated by pre-existing material arrangements or by their absence, and that these consequences spill over into various aspects of life. By consideri...
Introduction Energy demand and accompanying greenhouse gas emissions are growing in many parts of... more Introduction Energy demand and accompanying greenhouse gas emissions are growing in many parts of the world, in particular in non-OECD countries. While there are still big gaps in energy demand and emissions across countries, some of these are closing rapidly. For example, certain non-OECD metropolitan areas, such as Bangkok, already have comparable levels of emissions to metropolitan areas in Europe or the US (Kennedy et al., 2009). Residential energy demand in Thailand and Vietnam – the topic and countries discussed in this paper – is also showing a (slowly) converging trend with the UK (see Figure 1).
Over the next century most states are likely to face momentous and potentially catastrophic envir... more Over the next century most states are likely to face momentous and potentially catastrophic environmental impacts due to climate change. This has made managing energy policy – traditionally focused on delivering energy security and equitable access – much more strenuous. Governments now face an energy policy trilemma: delivering both traditional energy goals while also minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Most governments have found it difficult to achieve high levels of all three goals at any one time, particularly within the developing countries of Southeast Asia.
In urban studies and in energy policy there is much debate about the relationship between energy ... more In urban studies and in energy policy there is much debate about the relationship between energy demand and the density of residential areas, measured in units such as those of population/ha or population/km2. A different approach is presented in this paper. Rather than evaluating the relative merits of compact or sprawling urban forms, the focus is on the spatial configuration of the infrastructures, appliances and systems of provision on which city life depends. An interview-based study of households living in the same extremely ‘dense’ neighbourhood in Hanoi, Vietnam, shows how practices of cooling, laundering and cooking (and the energy demands associated with these practices) are shaped by material arrangements that exist within the home and that also stretch far beyond. The conclusion that supply and demand are constituted across multiple spatial scales has practical implications for urban design, and for how the relation between energy demand and density is defined and unders...
Biogas technology to support rural livelihoods and low-carbon development has been developed in d... more Biogas technology to support rural livelihoods and low-carbon development has been developed in different projects and programs in the Global South over the last few decades. However, the existence of multiple projects, actors and designs involved may lead to so-called fragmentation in governance. This research addresses the fragmented governance amongst the biogas programmes in Indonesia to study their impact on the implementation; the numbers of biodigesters disseminated and knowledge transferred. Drawing on concepts of fragmentation, regime effectiveness, and policy output, the research uses data from interviews with relevant actors, supplemented with documents review. Findings show that the governance architecture of biogas regime in Indonesia consists of different types of biogas programmes championed by different types of actors pursuing different objectives. There had been patterns and periodical shifts of configuration within the Indonesian biogas regime, i.e., from administ...
Abstract This thesis shows the politics, or conflict, cooperation and negotiation over control of... more Abstract This thesis shows the politics, or conflict, cooperation and negotiation over control of resources, involved in decentralized electricity production in the Lao PDR. This is exemplified by the case of pico-hydropower technology development in the broader context of centralized political control. Pico-hydropower units generate electricity on household level and are completely market-driven. Since there is virtually no empirical information on this technology in Laos, a detailed technographic description has been made of the hardware, ...
All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and ... more All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and potentially catastrophic environmental impacts due to climate change. Historically, energy policy has been directed towards simply achieving energy security. This goal has now been significantly complicated by the need to achieve it while minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) could play a crucial role in promoting the transition to energy and climate security but the relative (il)liberalism of the political regime they operate under influences their effectiveness. This article assesses how ENGOs have impacted on the transition to energy and climate security in Myanmar and Thailand, two Southeast Asian countries highly susceptible to climate impacts and characterized by illiberal rule. It finds that the impact of ENGOs was highly dependent on their strategies, tactics and operation, with community-level projects providing a key route to effect change under conditions of extreme illiberalism.
Countries in the Global South—which are contributing an increasing share of global greenhouse gas... more Countries in the Global South—which are contributing an increasing share of global greenhouse gas emissions—are actively developing carbon market mechanisms, including emissions trading systems and (voluntary) offset mechanisms. This article analyzes past and emerging experiments with carbon market mechanisms in Thailand and Vietnam, in the context of their domestic political economies and the shifting dynamics of the global climate governance regime. Drawing from thirty-three in-depth interviews and document analysis, I show the changing roles of government, the private sector, civil society, and donor and multilateral actors in these countries. Moreover, the article identifies key factors that may play roles in the further—and more synergistic—development of carbon market mechanisms: the generation of domestic demand for carbon credits; building and keeping human capacity and adequate data; creating space for civil society; ensuring coordination within the government and between sectors, notably the energy sector; and establishing further linkages with regional (Asian) and global carbon market mechanisms, such as those in China, Japan, and South Korea. These findings suggest that market-based mechanisms with high social and environmental integrity are one of the options that countries in the Global South have to achieve low-carbon development in the post-Paris climate change regime.
We know that patterns of domestic consumption are situated within broader systems of provision an... more We know that patterns of domestic consumption are situated within broader systems of provision and that home appliances like the fridge freezer bridge between practices of cooking, shopping and eating, on one hand, and increasingly global systems of food production, distribution and diet on the other. In analysing the uses of fridge freezers in Hanoi and Bangkok as expressions, in microcosm, of complex and evolving processes of urbanisation and food provisioning, this article provides new insight into how specific configurations, dependencies and patterns of consumption take hold and how they vary and change. Our analysis of systems and practices in flux has the dual function of showing how household strategies reflect and contribute to more extensive transformations, and of demonstrating how these are shaped by ongoing tensions and relations between new and established forms of urban food supply and associated concepts of freshness and safety. The result is a subtle account of the multiple routes through which consumer ‘needs’ evolve.
Handbook of Transitions to Energy and Climate Security, Nov 25, 2016
This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy cons... more This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy consuming country. As an emerging economy in Southeast Asia with a democratic history, albeit one afflicted by persistent authoritarianism, environmental activists and civil society have played a significant role in the development of public energy discourses and, to a lesser extent, government policies. Governance in Thailand tends to oscillate between direct military rule and more competitive elected governments. A coup in May 2014 resulted in the current military regime, which appears unlikely to surrender power to democratic forces anytime soon. Nevertheless, energy policy over the last two decades has remained largely impervious to changes in government, although much of the good work on developing renewable energy markets is unraveling under the current government.
The outline of a theory of practice by Shove et al. (2012) suggests that the ways in which elemen... more The outline of a theory of practice by Shove et al. (2012) suggests that the ways in which elements of practice – meanings, competences and things – circulate and link, help explain how practices are brought about, how they evolve, diffuse, and die. Shove et al. (2012: 22) suggest that by paying attention to the trajectories of elements, and to the making and breaking of links between them, it is possible to describe and analyse change and stability without prioritizing either agency or structure. This view has been employed in various studies that identify elements of practice and examine how these elements circulate (e.g. Shove & Pantzar, 2005; Gram-Hanssen, 2011; Shove et al., 2014).
Rapidly changing situations allow for insight into how infrastructures trigger the emergence, dis... more Rapidly changing situations allow for insight into how infrastructures trigger the emergence, disappearance and transformation of specific practices, and of how these developments are, in turn, important for infrastructural configurations. This chapter explores features of this infrastructure-practice dynamic through two village-level case studies of rural electrification in Thailand and Laos. In both cases, different ‘layers’ of electricity infrastructure entered the villages in time frames of a few decades. In-depth fieldwork provides insight into how infrastructures, practices and demand co-evolved in these two cases. Specifically, the chapter examines the emergence and development of new and ‘electrified’ practices, such as watching television and lighting. The cases illustrate that the consequences of electrification are sometimes mediated by pre-existing material arrangements or by their absence, and that these consequences spill over into various aspects of life. By consideri...
Introduction Energy demand and accompanying greenhouse gas emissions are growing in many parts of... more Introduction Energy demand and accompanying greenhouse gas emissions are growing in many parts of the world, in particular in non-OECD countries. While there are still big gaps in energy demand and emissions across countries, some of these are closing rapidly. For example, certain non-OECD metropolitan areas, such as Bangkok, already have comparable levels of emissions to metropolitan areas in Europe or the US (Kennedy et al., 2009). Residential energy demand in Thailand and Vietnam – the topic and countries discussed in this paper – is also showing a (slowly) converging trend with the UK (see Figure 1).
Over the next century most states are likely to face momentous and potentially catastrophic envir... more Over the next century most states are likely to face momentous and potentially catastrophic environmental impacts due to climate change. This has made managing energy policy – traditionally focused on delivering energy security and equitable access – much more strenuous. Governments now face an energy policy trilemma: delivering both traditional energy goals while also minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Most governments have found it difficult to achieve high levels of all three goals at any one time, particularly within the developing countries of Southeast Asia.
In urban studies and in energy policy there is much debate about the relationship between energy ... more In urban studies and in energy policy there is much debate about the relationship between energy demand and the density of residential areas, measured in units such as those of population/ha or population/km2. A different approach is presented in this paper. Rather than evaluating the relative merits of compact or sprawling urban forms, the focus is on the spatial configuration of the infrastructures, appliances and systems of provision on which city life depends. An interview-based study of households living in the same extremely ‘dense’ neighbourhood in Hanoi, Vietnam, shows how practices of cooling, laundering and cooking (and the energy demands associated with these practices) are shaped by material arrangements that exist within the home and that also stretch far beyond. The conclusion that supply and demand are constituted across multiple spatial scales has practical implications for urban design, and for how the relation between energy demand and density is defined and unders...
Biogas technology to support rural livelihoods and low-carbon development has been developed in d... more Biogas technology to support rural livelihoods and low-carbon development has been developed in different projects and programs in the Global South over the last few decades. However, the existence of multiple projects, actors and designs involved may lead to so-called fragmentation in governance. This research addresses the fragmented governance amongst the biogas programmes in Indonesia to study their impact on the implementation; the numbers of biodigesters disseminated and knowledge transferred. Drawing on concepts of fragmentation, regime effectiveness, and policy output, the research uses data from interviews with relevant actors, supplemented with documents review. Findings show that the governance architecture of biogas regime in Indonesia consists of different types of biogas programmes championed by different types of actors pursuing different objectives. There had been patterns and periodical shifts of configuration within the Indonesian biogas regime, i.e., from administ...
Abstract This thesis shows the politics, or conflict, cooperation and negotiation over control of... more Abstract This thesis shows the politics, or conflict, cooperation and negotiation over control of resources, involved in decentralized electricity production in the Lao PDR. This is exemplified by the case of pico-hydropower technology development in the broader context of centralized political control. Pico-hydropower units generate electricity on household level and are completely market-driven. Since there is virtually no empirical information on this technology in Laos, a detailed technographic description has been made of the hardware, ...
All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and ... more All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and potentially catastrophic environmental impacts due to climate change. Historically, energy policy has been directed towards simply achieving energy security. This goal has now been significantly complicated by the need to achieve it while minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) could play a crucial role in promoting the transition to energy and climate security but the relative (il)liberalism of the political regime they operate under influences their effectiveness. This article assesses how ENGOs have impacted on the transition to energy and climate security in Myanmar and Thailand, two Southeast Asian countries highly susceptible to climate impacts and characterized by illiberal rule. It finds that the impact of ENGOs was highly dependent on their strategies, tactics and operation, with community-level projects providing a key route to effect change under conditions of extreme illiberalism.
Countries in the Global South—which are contributing an increasing share of global greenhouse gas... more Countries in the Global South—which are contributing an increasing share of global greenhouse gas emissions—are actively developing carbon market mechanisms, including emissions trading systems and (voluntary) offset mechanisms. This article analyzes past and emerging experiments with carbon market mechanisms in Thailand and Vietnam, in the context of their domestic political economies and the shifting dynamics of the global climate governance regime. Drawing from thirty-three in-depth interviews and document analysis, I show the changing roles of government, the private sector, civil society, and donor and multilateral actors in these countries. Moreover, the article identifies key factors that may play roles in the further—and more synergistic—development of carbon market mechanisms: the generation of domestic demand for carbon credits; building and keeping human capacity and adequate data; creating space for civil society; ensuring coordination within the government and between sectors, notably the energy sector; and establishing further linkages with regional (Asian) and global carbon market mechanisms, such as those in China, Japan, and South Korea. These findings suggest that market-based mechanisms with high social and environmental integrity are one of the options that countries in the Global South have to achieve low-carbon development in the post-Paris climate change regime.
We know that patterns of domestic consumption are situated within broader systems of provision an... more We know that patterns of domestic consumption are situated within broader systems of provision and that home appliances like the fridge freezer bridge between practices of cooking, shopping and eating, on one hand, and increasingly global systems of food production, distribution and diet on the other. In analysing the uses of fridge freezers in Hanoi and Bangkok as expressions, in microcosm, of complex and evolving processes of urbanisation and food provisioning, this article provides new insight into how specific configurations, dependencies and patterns of consumption take hold and how they vary and change. Our analysis of systems and practices in flux has the dual function of showing how household strategies reflect and contribute to more extensive transformations, and of demonstrating how these are shaped by ongoing tensions and relations between new and established forms of urban food supply and associated concepts of freshness and safety. The result is a subtle account of the multiple routes through which consumer ‘needs’ evolve.
This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy cons... more This chapter examines the transition of Thailand to energy and climate security as an energy consuming country. As an emerging economy in Southeast Asia with a democratic history, albeit one afflicted by persistent authoritarianism, environmental activists and civil society have played a significant role in the development of public energy discourses and, to a lesser extent, government policies. Governance in Thailand tends to oscillate between direct military rule and more competitive elected governments. A coup in May 2014 resulted in the current military regime, which appears unlikely to surrender power to democratic forces anytime soon. Nevertheless, energy policy over the last two decades has remained largely impervious to changes in government, although much of the good work on developing renewable energy markets is unraveling under the current government.
Society and Natural Resources, 31(5): 580-98, 2018
All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and ... more All states, whether governed by liberal or illiberal regimes, face the prospect of momentous and potentially catastrophic environmental impacts due to climate change. Historically, energy policy has been directed towards simply achieving energy security. This goal has now been significantly complicated by the need to achieve it while minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) could play a crucial role in promoting the transition to energy and climate security but the relative (il)liberalism of the political regime they operate under influences their effectiveness. This article assesses how ENGOs have impacted on the transition to energy and climate security in Myanmar and Thailand, two Southeast Asian countries highly susceptible to climate impacts and characterized by illiberal rule. It finds that the impact of ENGOs was highly dependent on their strategies, tactics and operation, with community-level projects providing a key route to effect change under conditions of extreme illiberalism.
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