Investmentbydecentralisedactors

Summary

This topic focuses on investment decision-making by ‘decentralised actors’, by which we generally mean small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), individuals and households. It builds on earlier UKERC work (e.g. Rosenow and Eyre 2013) amongst other research, and takes an inter-disciplinary and socio-technical approach to understanding decisions.

SMEs

Our work on SMEs aims to deliver new insights into the energy use patterns, investment decisions, behaviours and practices of this very diverse population of firms. We are also investigating the relationship between personal and business values and decision-making, in the collaborative Growing Greener project.

Key outputs: 

• Hampton, S. and Fawcett, T. (2017) Challenges of designing and delivering SME energy policy. European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, Summer Study 2017.
• Blundel, R., Fawcett, T., Shaw, C.,  Hampton, S. & Westall, A.  (2017) Growing green?: co-creating an evidence-based model of SME engagement. In : ISBE Annual Conference 2017
• Fawcett, T.  (2017) UKERC blog: Small and Medium Enterprises – Research and Engagement

Households

The work on households covers a range of topics related to policy, and how it structures choices around investments in energy efficiency. Some of the research activity builds on research on personal carbon trading and energy and equity concerns first explored in UKERC Phase 1.

Key outputs:

• Podcast on personal carbon trading, featuring an interview by Tina Fawcett on an Australian community radio station.
• Fawcett, T., Rosenow, J. and Bertoldi, P. (2018) Energy efficiency obligation schemes: their future in the EU. Energy efficiency. DOI: 10.1007/s12053-018-9657-1
• Fawcett, T., Rosenow, J. and Bertoldi, P. (2017) The future of energy efficiency obligation schemes in the EU. European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, Summer Study 2017.
• Mayne, R., Fawcett, T. and Hyams, K. (2016) Climate justice and energy: applying international principles to UK residential energy policy. Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability, 22(4): 393-409.
• Fawcett, T. (2016) Policy and extreme energy consumption. DEMAND Centre Conference, Lancaster, 13-15 April 2016.
• Parag, Y. and Fawcett, T. (2014) Personal carbon trading: a review of research evidence and real-world experience of a radical idea. Energy and Emission Control Technologies, 2014(2): 23-32
• If you want something a bit more fun, this cartoon explains ‘personal carbon trading’ developed as part of this work, based on original research in Phase 1.

Further information

The work in this research theme primarily considers decisions about energy efficiency. For further information please see the links below. The first is a short defence of the value of energy efficiency, following a critical paper by another academic, the second focuses on the importance of energy efficiency in housing retrofits.

• Fawcett, T. & Rosenow, J., (2017) What is right with energy efficiency? A response to Elizabeth Shove, BRI Community blog. Published: November 2017.
• Fawcett, T., Killip, G., Topouzi, M. (2016). UKERC blog: Housing renovation matters: A response to the ‘Housing retrofits: a new start’ report.