Research ProjectNew Energy Spaces?

The transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources will lead to dramatic social and spatial changes. It implies both the transformation of existing energy spaces and the production of new ones. But which discourses and governance processes will construct these new spaces? How does the design of infrastructure and political programs influence, for example, decisions about the location of green hydrogen production projects? Which actors are involved in these decisions and how? The aim of the project is to analyze the connection between discourses and governance processes in different spatial contexts, and to investigate transregional interdependencies by analyzing selected major projects of the energy transition. The project is located at the interface of political ecology and human geography (economic/social geography), and aims to contribute to the debate within human geography on the spatial dimension of the energy transition, as well as to the interdisciplinary understanding of the processes involved. The regional focus is on Latin America. The project is funded for three years (2024-2026) by Heidelberg University’s „Expanding Internationality“ project within the framework of the Excellence Strategy put forth by the German federal and state governments.