KOSEN 한인과학기술자네트워크

1. Introduction
2. System scale and energy demand
3. Economic growth and energy demand
4. Energy efficiency and energy demand
5. Energy markets and energy demand
6. Energy policy and energy demand
7. Sociotechnical systems and energy demand
8. Summary
Acknowledgements
References

Most commentators expect improved energy efficiency and reduced energy demand to provide the dominant contribution to tackling global climate change. But at the global level, the correlation between increased wealth and increased energy consumption is very strong and the impact of policies to reduce energy demand is both limited and contested. Different academic disciplines approach energy demand reduction in different ways. This article provides an overview of the main issues and challenges associated with energy demand reduction, summarises how this challenge is framed by key academic disciplines, indicates how these can provide complementary insights for policymakers and argues that a sociotechnical perspective can provide a deeper understanding of the nature of this challenge and the processes through which it can be achieved. The article integrates ideas from the natural sciences, economics, psychology, innovation studies and sociology but does not give equal weight to each.