The United Nations Environment Programme design indexes for sustainable neighbourhoods, includes self-sufficiency, community plot ratio and civic generosity. The indexes are consistent with policies on European Union renewable energy communities, but their alignment has not been explored using indexes as guidelines for implementation. Furthermore, renewable energy community research is rarely explored with the actions of citizens who form them. Therefore, this research explores an emerging renewable energy community with a novel citizen centred perspective, using video interviews with fourteen citizens of a neighbourhood in Stockholm, Sweden to answer; ‘How can EU policy ambitions of renewable energy communities be aligned to citizens actions, using sustainable neighbourhood indexes: self-sufficiency, community plot ratio and civic generosity?’ We used thematic analysis to generate four main themes. The 1st theme finds that kitchens in homes represent shared spaces and can be used to enable more flexible energy community actions, such as time shifting. The 2nd theme finds that knowledge networks and neighbourhood needs can be used to engage more people in self-sufficient energy production actions together, with photovoltaics and batteries. The 3rd theme finds that without physical community plots, energy services disengage community management actions by creating artificial digital spaces, such as subscription services. The 4th theme finds that civic generosity genuinely excites citizen sharing actions of excess energy with other actors, for public services. Moreover, differences were found with how individuals interact in current energy systems and how communities might interact in future energy systems.

The thesis is motivated and inspired by existing environmental policies from

global governing bodies to local municipalities and their impact on the citizens there.

However, gaps exist between policies, their interventions and the effect on citizens,

where we do not know their impacts, their explanations and how to fine-tune them.

Some environmental policies are designed and deployed built on globalised knowledge,

rather than on local insights and actions of people expected to be affected by them.

Social interventions for such policies can introduce smart devices into neighbourhoods

but they may be developed based on government’s goals rather than on citizen’s needs.

Also, economic impacts are often varied based on income characteristics of a home,

which can bring a wide distribution of unintended, unjust and unequal effects.

This thesis explores a range of policies and intervention impacts on citizen actions,

from renewable energy directives to food waste fridges and retro fitting regulations.

The policies are designed at different scales, including the United Nations (global),

EU (continental), the Netherlands (national), Amsterdam (city) and Zuid-Oost (district).

Papers 1 and 2 study sustainable neighbourhoods and renewable energy communities

using visual ethnography with citizens from a neighbourhood within Stockholm.

Papers 3, 4 and 5 study energy poverty, food insecurity and household poverty

using mixed methods with citizens from various neighbourhoods in Amsterdam.

First, results indicate self-sufficiency, community plot ratio and civic generosity are

UNEP indexes that citizens find suitable for assessing sustainability in neighbourhoods.

However, self-sufficient production of food and energy is unfeasible for all homes.

Second, results show EU renewable energy communities are aligned to these indexes.

However, they greatly depend on civic ambitions of volunteers to be implemented.

Third, Dutch policies which include energy coaching and smart device interventions

reduce gas, electricity, income spent on energy bills and ultimately, energy poverty.

However, coaching helps homes feel in control of their consumption but not warmer.

Fourth, data indicates that a community smart fridge pilot intervention reduces

supermarket food waste, treats food insecurity and increases food interactions.

However, the viability of such a technology still depends on citizens as consumers.

Finally, results show that short term energy subsidies and long-term energy retrofits,

can significantly further impact important indicators contributing to household poverty.

However, home expenditures such as rent and groceries have continued to rise too.

Thus, this thesis has 5 papers all studying policy action gaps in which they:

a) are all inspired by environmental policy ambitions from global to city scale

b) study social interventions of achieving ambitions in urban neighbourhoods

c) focus on economic needs with a range of high income to low-income homes.

d) apply a citizen-centric approach with the assistance of smart devices or cameras

Avhandlingen motiveras och inspireras av befintliga miljöpolicys från global till lokal nivå samt genom dess påverkan på medborgare. Det finns dock en kunskapslucka i skärningspunkten mellan policys, interventioner och vilken effekt de har på medborgare. Vi känner inte till deras påverkan, förklaringsmodeller eller hur de kan finjusteras. Vissa miljöpolicys är utformade och implementerade utifrån global kunskap, snarare än utifrån lokala insikter och handlingar hos människor som förväntas påverkas av dem. Sociala interventioner för att införa policys för smarta enheter i stadsdelar kan utvecklas utifrån statliga mål snarare än utifrån medborgares behov. Dessutom varierar de ekonomiska effekterna ofta beroende på hushållens socioekonomi, vilket kan medföra oavsiktliga, orättvisa och ojämlika effekter. Denna avhandling utforskar effekten ett antal policys och interventioner har på medborgares handlingar, från direktiv om förnybar energi till kylskåp för att minska matsvinn till regler för energieffektivisering. Policys är utformade på olika nivåer, inklusive; FN (globalt), EU (kontinentalt), Nederländerna (nationellt) och Amsterdam (kommunalt). Artikel 1 och 2 studerar hållbara stadsdelar och förnybara energigemenskaper genom visuell etnografi med medborgare från en stadsdel i Stockholm. Artikel 3, 4 och 5 studerar energifattigdom, livsmedelsosäkerhet och hushållsfattigdom med hjälp av mixed methods med medborgare från olika stadsdelar i Amsterdam.

För det första visar resultaten att UNEP index “self-sufficiency”, “community plot ratio” och “civic genorosity” är index som medborgare anser lämpliga för att bedöma hållbarhet i stadsdelar. Dock är självförsörjande produktion av mat och energi ogenomförbar för alla hushåll. För det andra visar resultaten att EU:s förnybara energigemenskaper är i linje med dessa index. Dock är de starkt beroende av ideella ambitioner hos volontärer för att genomföras. För det tredje minskar nederländska policys som inkluderar energicoaching och smart device-interventioner förbrukningen av gas, elektricitet samt kostnaderna för energi och i slutändan energifattigdom. Dock hjälper coaching hushåll att känna kontroll över sin konsumtion men det får dem inte att känna sig varmare. För det fjärde indikerar data att ett smart gemenskapskylskåp minskar matsvinn i livsmedelsbutiker och behandlar livsmedelsosäkerhet genom en pilotintervention i en stadsdel med blandade inkomster. Dock beror livskraften för en sådan teknik fortfarande på medborgare som konsumenter. Slutligen visar resultaten att kortsiktiga energisubventioner och långsiktiga energiåtgärder kan påverka viktiga indikatorer som bidrar till hushållsfattigdom avsevärt. Dock har hushållsutgifter som hyra och matvaror också fortsatt att stiga.

Således har denna avhandling 5 artiklar som alla studerar policy-interventionsluckor där de: a) alla är inspirerade av miljöpolitiska ambitioner från global till stadsnivå b) studerar sociala interventioner för att uppnå mål i urbana stadsdelar c) fokuserar på ekonomiska behov med ett spann från hög- till låginkomsthushåll d) tillämpar ett medborgarcentrerat tillvägagångssätt med hjälp av smarta enheter eller kameror.

Energy poverty affects 550,000 homes in the Netherlands yet policy interventions to alleviate this issue are rare. Therefore, we test two energy coaching interventions in Amsterdam: a static information group (n = 67) which received energy efficient products and one energy-use report, and a smart information group (n = 50), which also had a display providing real-time feedback on energy-use. Results across both groups, show a 75% success rate for alleviating energy poverty. On average homes reduced monthly electricity consumption by 62 kWh (33%), gas by 41 m3 (42%), bills by €104 (53%) and percentage of income spent on energy from 10.1% to 5.3%.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released design indexes for sustainable neighbourhoods, including self-sufficiency, community plot ratio and civic generosity. However, they are developed from an urban planning perspective and not researched in relation to: a) the citizen perspective and b) how citizen interactions can contribute to the environment. Therefore, this research tests a novel set of indexes with an underused method of ethnographic video interviews with 14 citizens of a known sustainable neighbourhood in Stockholm, Sweden. A thematic analysis conducted on 28 h of interview data collected over a 4-week period yielded 5 main themes, from outdoor public spaces. Self-sufficiency findings suggest that citizens 1) perceive small scale self-sufficiency to be challenged by large scale structural efficiency and 2) circular actions with food waste to biogas can develop the self-sufficiency index further. Community plot ratio findings suggest that citizens 3) perceive community spaces to be accessible for all but not used by all. Civic generosity findings suggest citizens 4) perceive an imbalance between self-interests of the individual versus collective interests of the community, while 5) experienced citizens feel personally responsible to pioneer civic generosity interactions. UNEP indexes for designing neighbourhoods can define local sustainability, however, our findings support this, only if they can be acted upon by the citizens who live there.

Every day we face numerous lifestyle decisions, some dictated by habits and some more conscious, which may or may not promote sustainable living. Aided by digital technology, sustainable behaviors can diffuse within social groups and inclusive communities. This paper outlines a longitudinal experimental study of social influence in behavioral changes toward sustainability, in the context of smart residential homes. Participants are residing in the housing on campus referred to as KTH Live-In Lab, whose behaviors are observed w.r.t. key lifestyle choices, such as food, resources, mobility, consumption, and environmental citizenship. The focus is on the preparatory phase of the case study and the challenges and limitations encountered during its setup. In particular, this work proposes a definition of sustainability indicators for environmentally significant behaviors, and hypothesizes that, through digitalization of a household into a social network of interacting tenants, sustainable living can be promoted. Preliminary results confirm the feasibility of the proposed experimental methodology.