Household Energy Glossary release
The Household Energy Glossary seeks to enhance communication within the Australian energy sector, and between the sector and everyday people. Drawing on insights developed through landmark social science research, we focus on 4 key concepts – Consumers, Concessions, Cost, and Control – to show that the way we name and describe concepts importantly influences how we understand the challenges associated with them, and envision potential solutions.
Building on leading energy social science research conducted in Australia over the past 5 years, researchers from the ANU and Monash’s Emerging Technologies Research Lab have identified 4 areas key to Australia’s energy transition where communication challenges currently exist. The findings have been released today in the Household Energy Glossary report.
These findings explore how concepts key to Australia’s energy transition – Consumers, Concessions, Cost, and Control – are variously understood by the diverse stakeholders that comprise the energy sector. This can create difficulties in facilitating collaboration and actioning on challenges that require cross-sector cooperation or consumer involvement. For the energy transition to be successful, and for people to be meaningfully included and have trust in the technologies and initiatives they are being asked to engage with, it is critical that we foster a shared understanding between different sectors’ stakeholders regarding key terms and concepts.
Drawing inspiration from other sectors where a glossary has been developed to promote interdisciplinarity and address miscommunication between stakeholders, the authors pursue this aim by exploring, simplifying, and 'translating' key terms and concepts.
“With the energy transition continuing rapidly, and everyday people playing a growing role in the changing energy system, it is vital that we improve the mutual understanding between stakeholders in what is an increasingly diverse sector. These communication challenges exist both within the energy sector, as well as between the sector and its customers. This report will help to foster the shared understanding that is so essential to cross-sector cooperation, thereby supporting sector stakeholders to make better decisions around how to intervene in or reimagine the energy system.” Dr Rex Martin
It is anticipated that the Household Energy Glossary report will help the energy sector and research partners better understand one another and everyday consumers.
Authors
Dr Rex Martin, Dr Fareed Kaviani, Dr Kari Dahlgren, Ms Yidan Gao
Funding Acknowledgement:
This report was funded by the Early Career Researcher Seed Grant of the Faculty of IT at Monash University.
Scholarly Acknowledgement:
We would also like to acknowledge the many scholars who have contributed to the social science research which has inspired this glossary. Many of the work is cited in these pages, but we especially would like to acknowledge Professor Yolande Strengers, Professor Sarah Pink, Dr Larissa Nicholls and Dr Hannah Korsmeyer who have collaborated on the Digital Energy Futures Research and the Future Home Demand Research, which have inspired this report.