PREFACE
ix
are not always simply a function of the degree of innovation and the
characteristics of the technology in question. Often, the success of new
technology follows a social logic more than a technological logic. Among
other factors, human perceptions of risk and benefit, economic and political interests can either promote or inhibit the success of any technology,
regardless of technological merit.
The area of renewable energy offers rich examples of this. The interplay
of perceptions of risk and benefit, and of economic and political interests,
has exercised a powerful impact on which types of energy technology are
adopted and diffused, and which are not. The interplay of these social
factors plus the objective strengths and weaknesses of various technologies
is a theme vividly illustrated in the chapters of this book.
We can see this interplay in debates about the comparative merits of
various forms of renewable energy, such as wind and solar, and in the
debate about the merits of nuclear power as an alternative. It is striking
how often these debates often boil down to assertions about comparative technical feasibility: Is it easier to secure nuclear power plants against
any kind of earthquake or tsunami, or to deal with the inevitable power
flux/intermittent nature of solar and wind energy, and to build smart
grids and grid-scale storage of electricity? Indeed, in an era of rapid technological change it is not hard to imagine that given a long-enough
time horizon, all these goals could perhaps be largely achieved, which
means that these debates are perhaps not ultimately about technological
feasibility, even though that is how these debates are often portrayed.
Rather, the technical issues in these debates often mask the real issues at
stake, which are more about values, interests, identity, and perceptions of
risk that in significant respects are independent of science and technology.
Ultimately, these debates will have to address values, interests, identity,
and perceptions more directly in order to reach successful conclusions.
What forms of energy will best represent our values, material interests,
identity, and risk tolerance? In short, half of the answer to this question
will be technological, and the other half will be social. We believe this
volume makes an important contribution to addressing both sides of this
question, the technical and social aspects of renewable energy.
We would like to thank the Faculty of Social Science and Technology
Management (SVT), and the Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences
(SU), the successor to SVT, and the Toshiba International Foundation
(TIFO) for generously funding the three NTNU Japan Seminars from
which this book emerged. We would like to thank the Royal Norwegian
ix
are not always simply a function of the degree of innovation and the
characteristics of the technology in question. Often, the success of new
technology follows a social logic more than a technological logic. Among
other factors, human perceptions of risk and benefit, economic and political interests can either promote or inhibit the success of any technology,
regardless of technological merit.
The area of renewable energy offers rich examples of this. The interplay
of perceptions of risk and benefit, and of economic and political interests,
has exercised a powerful impact on which types of energy technology are
adopted and diffused, and which are not. The interplay of these social
factors plus the objective strengths and weaknesses of various technologies
is a theme vividly illustrated in the chapters of this book.
We can see this interplay in debates about the comparative merits of
various forms of renewable energy, such as wind and solar, and in the
debate about the merits of nuclear power as an alternative. It is striking
how often these debates often boil down to assertions about comparative technical feasibility: Is it easier to secure nuclear power plants against
any kind of earthquake or tsunami, or to deal with the inevitable power
flux/intermittent nature of solar and wind energy, and to build smart
grids and grid-scale storage of electricity? Indeed, in an era of rapid technological change it is not hard to imagine that given a long-enough
time horizon, all these goals could perhaps be largely achieved, which
means that these debates are perhaps not ultimately about technological
feasibility, even though that is how these debates are often portrayed.
Rather, the technical issues in these debates often mask the real issues at
stake, which are more about values, interests, identity, and perceptions of
risk that in significant respects are independent of science and technology.
Ultimately, these debates will have to address values, interests, identity,
and perceptions more directly in order to reach successful conclusions.
What forms of energy will best represent our values, material interests,
identity, and risk tolerance? In short, half of the answer to this question
will be technological, and the other half will be social. We believe this
volume makes an important contribution to addressing both sides of this
question, the technical and social aspects of renewable energy.
We would like to thank the Faculty of Social Science and Technology
Management (SVT), and the Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences
(SU), the successor to SVT, and the Toshiba International Foundation
(TIFO) for generously funding the three NTNU Japan Seminars from
which this book emerged. We would like to thank the Royal Norwegian