Achieving Inclusion within Smart Energy Cities

Achieving Inclusion within Smart Energy Cities: A case study on the smart energy domain of the city of Amsterdam

van der Werf, Isabelle (TU Delft Technology, Policy and Management)

Hoppe, T. (mentor)
Janssen, M.F.W.H.A. (graduation committee)
Noori, Negar (graduation committee)

Delft University of Technology

Management of Technology (MoT)

2021-08-31

The Dutch transition towards carbon-neutral cities is in full swing and the share of local solar and wind energy is growing rapidly, as well as the electrification of heating, cooling and mobility. Amsterdam is getting the energy transition started and is a forerunner when it comes to developments within the smart energy domain. As a result, multiple smart energy projects are carried out and will be carried out in Amsterdam in order to make Amsterdam a smart energy city. However, it is still unclear in what way these technological developments influence local communities and businesses and how we make sure vulnerable groups are not pushed out, isolated, and marginalized from important urban services, amenities, commercial flows en jobs. This brings us to the concept of inclusion and the need to build inclusive cities. Inclusion exists in many forms but in the smart energy domain mainly ensuring equal rights and equal participation of all citizens including the most vulnerable groups, remains a challenge. Moreover, enabling the disadvantaged and typically low-income people to share in rising prosperity as a result of technology development and eliminating inequities by providing information and financial support, is often not a main concern in smart energy projects which results in smart energy cities being not inclusive. Therefore, the main research question in this thesis is as follows: "How can inclusion be achieved within the smart energy domain of the city of Amsterdam in order become an inclusive smart energy city?". This thesis consists of a theoretical chapter in which a theoretical framework is used that aims at mapping the pillars of an inclusive smart energy city. This framework is used in the empirical part of the thesis in order to found out to what extent inclusion is present within smart energy projects in Amsterdam and how inclusion can be achieved. This empirical part of the thesis consists of an embedded case study that involves two smart energy projects in Amsterdam that are chosen as sub-units of analysis. The first sub-unit of analysis is the Local Inclusive Future Energy (LIFE) project and the second sub-unit of analysis is the Lighthouse City Amsterdam Project. Data is collected through documents and interviews. The interviews are conducted as part of qualitative research and analysed using ATLAS.ti. The results of the case study showed that despite the fact that participation and inclusion are often part of smart energy project plans, effectively achieving it remains a challenge. Challenges related to inclusion identified in this research are the gap between technology and society, limitations as a result of regulations, the rise of inequality, and the existence of different perspectives. Nevertheless, these challenges can be faced by using the theoretical framework as a guideline and in this way meet the objectives of an inclusive smart energy city.

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Student theses

master thesis

© 2021 Isabelle van der Werf