ABSTRACT
As explained in the previous chapter, one of the quintessential features of a governance perspective on transitions is the recognition that the transition to a sustainable society is but one of a wider set of potential outcomes, to be achieved in the turmoil of various, co-existing structural transformations. In this chapter, we will discuss the three most important examples of ongoing structural transformation which affect the institutions of modern societies, and their mutual alignment:
Structural transformations affecting the polity. This focuses on insti-• tutional transformations in the state, and in its relations with the market, science and civil society. Structural transformations in innovation systems, i.e. systems involved • in designing, generating, disseminating and using new technologies. They are located especially at the interface between the knowledge and market realms, but with important connections to the state and civil society. The emergence of new, often transnational, arrangements for corpo-• rate governance.
