Energy policy can be a highly contentious area of government policy, which is often described as requiring the reconciliation of affordable, clean, efficient and secure provision of electricity, heating and transportation fuel. Unpacking each term in itself can be fraught: promoting energy investment may be in tension with lower residential prices; reducing greenhouse gas emissions does not always imply lower local and regional adverse impacts; and more reliable supplies may not necessarily be indigenous. What constitutes a ‘good’ policy is conditioned not only by technology and financial factors but also by social norms and values, institutions, geopolitics, public trust and history. Increasingly, concepts such as fairness, justice and equity are coming to the fore in the design, implementation and evaluation of energy policies.

The seminar series will explore these dimensions from different disciplinary perspectives including economics, history, philosophy, theology, politics, law, anthropology and psychology in addition to engineering and the physical sciences. With the aim of identifying principles and processes for ‘good’ energy policy making, each seminar will address a case ranging from pipelines and nuclear energy to environmental regulation and market design.

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