• Max Vittrup Jensen
10. term, Master in Environmental Management (Master Programme)
What would happen to the specific Czech rural area of Bouzovsko, if suddenly -or gradually in a 15-year time span- a drastic shortage of fossil fuels occurred? The aim of the Transition Initiatives is to prepare for such a possibility through a communal based positive gradual descent. The question posed and answered in this M.Sc. thesis is: 1) Is the Transition approach applicable in socially/culturally less favorable areas? 2) How can Bouzovsko again become sustainable? 3) How may the Transition concept best be applied in Bouzovsko? Based upon an empirical comparison between localities in Norway, California, Oregon, New York and The Czech Republic, including two different future modeling techniques and aligned with methodologies aimed at analyzing potential for implementation of new technologies and policies, the conclusion is: That it is unlikely to implement the Transition approach in socially/culturally less favorable areas; that the parameter which prevents this is the lack of a popular understanding (by the local population), that there is no other way possible, and finally that the best way to ensure the application is to follow the model of the ‘Shock Doctrine’: Have a specialized plan ready for implementation when the time is right.
LanguageEnglish
Publication date2009
Number of pages59
Publishing institutionAalborg Universitet
ID: 18941377