Households in place: socio-spatial (dis)advantage in energy-carbon restructuring

It is unlikely that the costs and benefits of low carbon restructuring will be distributed evenly or fairly between people and places. Some households and localities will benefit from decarbonisation but others will be disproportionately affected by rising energy costs and job loss. The costs and benefits of low carbon restructuring will impact on households and localities in various ways. In this paper we use the example of England to explore different dimensions of advantage and disadvantage in low carbon restructuring and how they might be reinforced or mediated by intervention by governments, NGOs and citizens. The paper makes a distinctive contribution by linking different sites and policy areas in the distributional politics of decarbonisation from the perspective of individuals and households. Emphasis is placed on understanding just energy-carbon transitions from a households-in-place perspective. The analytical framework is exemplified through case studies of the ‘coming to ground’ of different strands of energy-carbon restructuring in England.