ABSTRACT
Focusing empirically on two emerging economies reveals a wide range of very specific and profound arguments, but also limits the generalizability of results. Nonetheless, such an in-depth qualitative analysis is necessary to better acknowledge the complexity of societal systems and take into account the manifold governance mechanisms that affect renewable energy development. Limiting the number of country and project case studies allowed the investigation of a variety of very fundamental political issues that are relevant not only to renewable energy development, but also to the field of development cooperation as such. It was possible to analyze in great depth how political structures, decisionmaking processes and power relations in the Philippines and Indonesia affect the development of renewables and their support in its entirety. Further broad matters raised include the effects of decentralization, aid effectiveness, donor harmonization, upscaling of results and structural change through donor-driven interventions. The cross-country comparison helped to put the results presented here into a global context. Investigating energy transitions means dealing with extraordinarily complex and long-term societal issues. Such a highly contested field of social sciences requires an open, but context-specific, approach that needs to acknowledge the unique features of a country’s governance arrangement. Following its essential research philosophy, this book identified patterns and correlations between the complex political system of a developing country and renewable energy development. Linking the governance system to the status of renewables in a country, the framework is intended to reveal critical obstacles to and potential for renewable energy development and identify the actors and processes that determine an energy transition.
