ABSTRACT
The main research question we address is how to understand and infl uence long-term and complex socio-technical transitions. Our journey in this part of the book is geared to developing a socio-technical perspective on transitions, borrowing insights from disciplines such as science and technology studies, evolutionary economics and sociology. We defi ne such transitions as shifts from one socio-technical system to another. These systems operate at the level of societal domains or functions such as transport, energy, housing, agriculture and food, communication, and health care. The study of transitions is a special kind of research topic, different from many other topics commonly dealt with in mainstream social science. We consider transitions as having the following characteristics:
1. Transitions are co-evolution processes that require multiple changes in socio-technical systems or confi gurations. Transitions involve both the development of technical innovations (generation of novelties through new knowledge, science, artifacts, and industries) and their use (selection, adoption) in societal application domains. This use includes the immediate adoption and selection by consumers (markets and integration into user practices), as well as the broader process of societal embedding of (new) technologies (e.g. regulations, markets, infrastructures, and cultural symbols).
