Report on: Literature on Texel

Original By: Rob P. J. M. Raven Eva Heiskanen Raimo Lovio Mike Hodson Bettina Brohmann   Summarized by: Robert-Jan Vos   The writers think it is interesting to investigate the implementation of biogas projects in Europe because it is on the verge of a breakthrough since all the ingredients are there (conducting research, starting development and deployment projects, providing financial resources

The text “Construction of an eco-island: A case study of Chongming island, China” explores the applicability of the eco-island concept. According to the author, the sustainable equilibrium can be achieved only if all subsystems perform acceptably and have enough time to adapt to changing conditions. Therefore, sustainable transitions can’t occur if there is disruption of the balance among…

From sectoral systems of innovation to socio-technical systems  - Insights about dynamics and change from sociology and institutional theory.   The text provides four contributions to the approach of Sectoral systems of innovation: 1: Socio technical systems 2: Analytical distinction between systems, actors and the institutions 3: Making the institutions an integral part of the analysis. 4:…

New energy for Energyplan Texel 2030 This is a research based report and can be characterized as a feasibility study for a self-sufficient energy system on Texel in 2030. The article maps the current energy demand of the island specified in different sectors, as well as the expected figures in 2030. Furthermore some basic energy-demand reducing principles are stated, but these are mainly…

Regarding sustainability, most island communities face two major challenges: energy supply and waste disposal. First, most islands do not have indigenous energy resources, but instead have to ship in fuels over often considerable distances, at a considerable financial burden. Second, most islands do not have enough space for operating landfills, so that waste is often burnt under hazardous…

Sustainable development is the greatest challenge of our time. It brings together a number of global problems—pollution and intoxication of the space in which we live; poverty and starvation; climate change; depletion of mineral and organic resources; ecological devastation; and global inequity. Different descriptions of sustainability sometimes compete, and sometimes create dilemmas for people…

Innovation politics post-Rio+20: hybrid pathways to sustainability? Reviewed by Tatiana Armijos Moya   “States should cooperate to strengthen endogenous capacity-building for sustainable development by improving scientific understanding through exchanges of scientific and technological knowledge, and by enhancing the development, adaptation, diffusion and transfer of technologies, including new…

Towards understanding governance for sustainable urban water management Paper by S.J. van de Meene,*, R.R. Brown , M.A. Farrelly Reviewed by Pinal Desai This literature aims at the governmental level policies that should be incorporated to make urban water management more sustainable. The research focuses the current systems and trends and proposed theories in the Australian urban sectors. The…

Development: The rise and decline of an ideal By Wolfgang Sachs Reviewed by Pinal Desai and Tatiana Armijos Moya In this literature, the writer highlights in great detail the definitions of the terms developed and underdeveloped. He defines how the definition of development changed from a process of maturation in history to the actions proposed by planners and engineers: those who set out to…

Reviewed from Thalia Kakolyri STRATEGIES FOR SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGIES: INNOVATION IN SYSTEMS, PRODUCTS AND SERVICES The text of Karel Mulder tries to answer the question: “What to design to contribute to Sustainable Design?” Sustainable design is not something stable, but is a meaning that changes according to the place and time. For example few years ago diseases and starvation were the most…