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ICT Innovations for Sustainability pp 351–365Cite as

Social Practices, Households, and Design in the Smart Grid

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Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 310))

Abstract

Considerable effort is put into the design and development of cleaner and more efficient energy systems. In this paper, we describe the problems arising when these systems are designed from a top-down technological perspective and when much development fails to account for the complex processes involved since people and their practices are key parts of transitioning to new systems. The transition to a smart grid not only demands new technologies, but is also fundamentally dependent on households taking on a role as co-managers of the energy system. The chapter illustrates how the emerging research field of “sustainable interaction design” may play a role in supporting these roles and in shaping sustainable practices.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    IEC Smart Grid Standardization Road Map, June 2010, Edition 1.0.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Swedish Energy Agency and VINNOVA for funding part of the reported work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Interactive Institute Swedish ICT, Eskilstuna, Sweden

    Cecilia Katzeff

  2. Centre for Sustainable Communications CESC, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden

    Cecilia Katzeff & Josefin Wangel

  3. Division of Environmental Strategies Research FMS, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden

    Josefin Wangel

Authors
  1. Cecilia Katzeff
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  2. Josefin Wangel
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Correspondence to Cecilia Katzeff .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Informatics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

    Lorenz M. Hilty

  2. Zurich, Switzerland

    Bernard Aebischer

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Katzeff, C., Wangel, J. (2015). Social Practices, Households, and Design in the Smart Grid. In: Hilty, L., Aebischer, B. (eds) ICT Innovations for Sustainability. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 310. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09228-7_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09228-7_21

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-09227-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-09228-7

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