Sub-national government and pathways to sustainable energy
本特刊论文探讨次国家级政府（如城市区域和权力下放政府）如何影响可持续能源转型，分析其在建筑改造、能源市场整合、法律权力分配和基础设施审批冲突中的作用，强调不同政府层级间的相互依赖和反思性治理。
In an effort to understand how to promote more sustainable forms of energy provision, researchers have begun addressing the scale of political and governance processes, yet the effects of sub-national government remain neglected. At the same time, analysts of political devolution, decentralisation and independence have rarely given attention to the energy sector. Papers in this special issue seek to better understand the relationship between sub-national government and pathways to sustainable energy: examining how city-regional and devolved governments have shaped agendas for building retrofit; elucidating the importance of decentralised governance in knitting together electricity, heat and transport energy markets; mapping the complex, fuzzy spatial organisation of legal powers to direct energy policy across multi-level polities; and analysing conflicts over the allocation of energy infrastructure consenting powers between national and devolved governments. The papers highlight the interdependencies of action in different governmental arenas, and reinforce arguments for greater central-to-local reflexivity in governance styles. Analysing the interface between sub-national government and energy transition also raises new questions about the meaning of ‘sovereignty’, the fragmentary nature of democratic control over energy systems, and the effects of boundaries.