ABSTRACT
Energy systems are inseparable from the societies that construct them and rely on them, and the production, distribution and use of energy involve a series of interconnected technical and social components. Changing any one of the component parts will have consequences for other parts of the system. Energy policy in the UK and other major industrial countries implies a remaking of the energy system over the next decade and beyond. The prospects for change are both complex and potentially confusing, and energy system change needs to be analysed in ways which recognize and take account of the diversity and interconnectedness of the different components of the system.
