Miriam Ricci

The ‘value-action gap’ in public attitudes towards sustainable energy: the case of hydrogen energy

There is now increasing evidence that the public has become much more aware of global warming, climate change and environmental risks. This has been repeatedly demonstrated in a number of official surveys and other research. However, the salience of these issues varies; for some social groups, there are other more significant problems and urgent priorities. It has also been found that while expressing strong beliefs about the negative consequences of global warming, or dependence on fossil fuels, or more positive approval of alternative and renewable energy sources, people do not seem to have translated those opinions into practical actions to limit their energy use in their domestic consumption, lifestyles, or travel patterns, for example. It is this apparent ‘discrepancy’ between stated beliefs (and values) and behaviour, which comprises the so-called ‘value-action gap’. Various writers have observed this in different contexts previously, as will be discussed below. In this chapter, we examine the importance of the value-action gap in relation to hydrogen energy and the emerging hydrogen economy. Qualitative and quantitative data are presented from a series of focus groups and a telephone questionnaire survey of selected samples in seven different areas of England and Wales. The chapter first gives a very brief outline of the nature of hydrogen energy and its potential uses as an innovative technology. Secondly, it reviews selected literature about public attitudes towards environmental and energy issues and the apparent valueaction gap. Findings from our recent research are then discussed. Finally, some general conclusions are offered to account for the ambivalence revealed in this case of hydrogen energy, and the disjunction between people’s awareness of an energy crisis and their reluctance to change behaviour.

Stakeholders’ and Publics’ Perceptions of Hydrogen Energy Technologies

Hydrogen energy is not new science but remains a prospective technology. It is relatively unknown to the public. It might substitute for petroleum and natural gas in powering transport and in heating houses, offices, factories and public buildings. How might potential end-users react to its introduction? How do those who already have a stake in developing the technology at local level envisage its future?

Qualitative Insights into the Effect on Travel Behavior of Joining a Carshare

Carsharing organizations (carshares) provide collectively available vehicles that can be booked for exclusive use on a pay-as-you-go basis. Previous research has shown that two groups join carshares: (a) accessors, who do not have a car when they join the carshare and therefore gain access to one, and (b) shedders, who give up a car when they join the carshare. The paper examines the circumstances and motivations that cause accessors and shedders to join a carshare, the changes in their travel behavior in the short and longer run, and how the travel behavior might have changed if the carshare had not been joined. These objectives were achieved through in-depth interviews with 16 members of a carshare in Bath, United Kingdom. The interviewed members were selected to achieve a mix of accessors, shedders, recent members, and longstanding members. It was found that carshare attracted people who were already contemplating giving up their cars or who had been triggered by life events to consider giving up their cars. Joining a car-share prevented the acquisition of cars for some members, but some subsequently took opportunities to acquire a car as their circumstances changed. Once shedders became members, they adapted to managing without a personal car, used a variety of transport modes, planned their activity–travel schedules in advance, and took into account the costs and convenience of different options. The increasing popularity of new mobility options, such as carsharing, also has implications for the methods used to analyze and model travel behavior. The option of joining a carshare and using carshare vehicles should be included in transport models for areas in which carshares operate.

The Mirage of Citizen Engagement in Uncertain Science: Public attitudes towards hydrogen energy

This paper addresses some of the debates about citizen involvement in decisions about science and technological innovation. It describes some of the claims and scientific uncertainties surrounding hydrogen energy. It examines qualitative evidence from a series of recent case studies in the UK about public perceptions of hydrogen. It is shown that public attitudes towards citizen engagement are highly ambivalent. While citizens approve of greater consultation, they raise doubts about the degree to which laypersons can be mobilised to participate in public debates, they express contradictory views about their trust in experts, and they are sceptical about whether such involvement will influence policy. These findings add further questions about the efficacy of upstream public engagement in assessments of emergent or novel technologies. They also suggest that over-optimistic expectations about upstream engagement may have to be moderated.

Ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty surrounding the hazards of hydrogen and public views of emergent risks

New technologies and emergent risks pose special problems for risk governance and regulation. This paper outlines some of the uncertainties about the hazards of hydrogen energy and examines qualitative evidence from recent deliberative Citizens’ Panels in England and Wales about hydrogen energy technologies. It is shown that laypeople express ambivalent and contradictory views about, and critical trust in, experts’ views about hydrogen. The findings are discussed in relation to the International Risk Governance Council framework for emergent risks characterised by ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty.

Deliberation over new hydrogen energy technologies: Evidence from two citizens’ panels in the UK

Hydrogen energy and hydrogen energy technologies are still largely at the experimental and demonstration project stages. If the hydrogen is produced sustainably from renewable sources, it may be a potential means of reducing carbon dioxide emissions and achieving other environmental objectives. But hydrogen technologies are still ‘emergent’ – seeking a niche to compete against incumbent technologies in stationary and mobile applications. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (buses and automobiles) and hydrogen refuelling stations have been developed, but they have yet to become established in the market. Much attention has been given to technical risk assessment of hydrogen as a hazardous gas, but broader ‘whole systems’ appraisals of a hydrogen infrastructure (for domestic and transport uses) are lacking. Importantly, public risk perceptions are seen as crucial factors influencing acceptance or rejection. This paper examines qualitative evidence about public attitudes towards hydrogen energy technologies and compares results from two Citizens’ Panels carried out recently in England and Wales. These Citizens’ Panels enabled selected samples of the general public to question the experts and deliberate over the issues raised. The paper highlights unresolved questions concerning ‘critical trust’ of experts and other stakeholders, and citizens’ demands for greater familiarity with the hydrogen technologies in practical, everyday settings, in order to offer judgements about their desirability and feasibility.

Rapidly diffusing innovation: whether the history of the Internet points the way for hydrogen energy

This paper identifies conditions for the rapid diffusion of what may be part of the solution for global sustainable energy – hydrogen – by drawing a comparison with the contemporary history of the Internet. The Cold War drove the take-off of the Internet and state regulation ensured that the market on which its rapid diffusion came to depend was not controlled by corporations. To take-off and start to diffuse, hydrogen energy could similarly have to be considered a “public good”. However, the comparison with the Internet reveals differences too. The Internet diffused rapidly among the public at low cost to individual users, starting in the mid 1980s and kicking off in the 1990s. To achieve affordable hydrogen transport in the long term, many drivers might have to forgo cars for public transport. Moreover, global sustainable energy demands cooperation between nations rather than the conflict that spurred the Internet.

Towards sustainable energy: are there lessons from the history of the early factory system?

Development of sustainable energy has been slow. We compare it with a historical example of rapid innovation – the first factory system. The first factory system in the English Derwent Valley mills in the eighteenth century was based not on new technology like the steam engine, but on the familiar water mill. The locale was less prosperous than others in its agriculture and cottage textile industry, far from the English trade hub London and difficult to access. The drivers were “bottom-up”. Among the lessons drawn for sustainable energy are that bottom-up innovation, using whichever technology is practical in the context and local skills and know-how, might be a viable alternative to the current attempt at top-down innovation. The locales likely to succeed would have human resources, rather than significant finance capital, but a growing market for their products, the development of which is underpinned by institutions of the state and international cooperation.

Substituting ‘H2 for C’ and reducing global inequalities in health

Life expectancy and health differ greatly between emerging and developed countries and within countries. Global dependence on fossil fuels contributes to health inequalities through air pollution, the geopolitics of scarce resources and probable climate change arising from global warming. Substituting for fossil fuels (C), hydrogen (H2), as vector and store of energy produced from low-carbon and/or renewable sources could reduce health inequalities by improving the environment. It is unlikely that the global market would initiate such a change. Nation-states would not act alone and would need to cooperate in leading it. Global recession might be the incentive that is needed to restructure a C-economy into an H2-economy. Yet, the transition would carry high costs, which would have to be borne by the developed countries in order to achieve a new treaty that included emerging countries. H2 for C is thus not only a technical fix, but also a global-ethical choice.