Open research questions in Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy
53 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,055 Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.
What the literature leaves open
https://www.iea.org/reports/global-critical-minerals-outlook-2024 Kazemzadeh, E., Fuinhas, J. A., Shirazi, M., Koengkan, M., & Silva, N. (2023). Does economic complexity increase energy intensity?. Energy Efficiency, 16(4), Article 29. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12053-023-10104-w Khan Baloch, S., Ali, S., Bin Umar, H., Waqar, M., & Abbas, T. (2025). Integration of renewable energy sources into urban power grids: Challenges and control strategies.
The Role of Project Managers in an Efficient Energy Transition Process: An Exploratory Study · 2026 · DOIFuture studies should consider integrative designs that combine quantitative and qualitative Elasu et al. This dominance highlights the emphasis on measurable, empirical outcomes but suggests that socio-cultural and con- textual factors influencing household energy behaviors may be underexplored.
This was a non-funded study and the resource limitations created a regional approach to sampling context specific respondents that were relevant to our research objectives. Our findings are exploratory but are transferable to a larger population. We suggest future research on the topic to reach a broader validation. Author contributions The author created study conception and design, material preparation, contributed to data collection, data analysis, re- porting, interpretation and discussion. Funding Open access funding provided by the Carolinas Consortium. This research received no specific funding from any agency in the pub- lic, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. Data availability The data that support the findings of this study are available from the author upon reasonable request.
Consumer reaction to clean energy initiatives: communication strategies for power management providers · 2026 · DOIThe paper does not quantify the scalability constraints and capital/operating cost trajectories for deploying CO2 capture technology specifically on German biomass and waste-fired combined heat and power plants, despite the Swedish case study (Beiron et al., 2022) demonstrating regional variation in CHP integration feasibility.
The assessment does not incorporate Germany's emerging EU carbon removals certification framework requirements into the economic evaluation of different biomass utilization and carbon removal pathways, leaving a gap between regulatory compliance needs and techno-economic pathway comparison.
The paper does not establish how different biomass feedstock types (Miscanthus × giganteus, agricultural residues, forestry waste) suitable for German cultivation should be prioritized across competing utilization pathways (energy, pulp/paper, biochemicals, biofuels) using dynamic cost-benefit analysis that incorporates spatial heterogeneity of feedstock supply and end-use demand.
The assessment lacks quantitative evaluation of biochar-based carbon sequestration pathways specifically for German sandy-textured and poor-nutrient soils, including measured soil nutrient cycling improvements and crop yield increases under German climate and agronomic conditions, despite biochar's potential documented in systematic reviews.
The paper does not address the human and planetary health implications of scaling negative emissions technologies derived from biomass utilization across German regions, as indicated by the gap between the comprehensive CDR assessment for Germany (Borchers et al., 2024) and the lack of health-impact evaluation in this pathway-specific case study.
The assessment does not provide a comparative life cycle assessment and economic analysis specifically quantifying the levelized cost of negative CO2 emissions across different German biomass conversion pathways (pyrolysis, gasification, biochar production) coupled with carbon capture and storage, despite this being critical for Germany's negative emissions strategy outlined in the BMWK (2024) long-term strategy.
The paper assesses multiple biomass utilization pathways for Germany but lacks spatially-explicit analysis of raw material collection locations and their impact on transportation costs for different biomass thermal conversion technologies. The referenced work by Cheng et al. (2020b) demonstrates that spatial distribution of biomass feedstock significantly affects economics, yet this German case study does not systematically model collection point optimization across different regional biomass availability scenarios.
Stakeholder collaboration mechanisms and conflict resolution platforms are described generically without specifying: (1) how to weight competing stakeholder interests quantitatively, (2) decision criteria for resolving irreconcilable conflicts between energy expansion and biodiversity preservation, or (3) power dynamics when stakeholders have asymmetric influence over energy-livelihood-conservation outcomes.
Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · 2026 · DOICorporate Social Responsibility frameworks are cited as contributors to conflict mitigation in energy development, but the paper does not quantify CSR effectiveness in reducing biodiversity loss or improving livelihood outcomes, nor does it identify which CSR components (environmental stewardship vs. community engagement vs. ethical practices) have the greatest impact on reducing trade-offs.
Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · 2026 · DOIThe Adaptive Policy Design approach is proposed as essential for energy-biodiversity-livelihood governance, but lacks specification of which feedback mechanisms should trigger policy adjustments, at what quantitative thresholds these adjustments should occur, and how regulatory frameworks should be operationalized for different energy sectors (solar, wind, hydroelectric, mining).
Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · 2026 · DOIConservation Offset Programs are discussed as a mitigation strategy, but the paper provides no concrete data on effectiveness metrics, monitoring protocols, or threshold limits for when habitat restoration and conservation easements actually achieve biodiversity parity with energy development impacts. Specific case studies comparing offset success rates across different ecosystem types are needed.
Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · 2026 · DOIThe Energy–Biodiversity–Livelihood Trade-off Framework is presented conceptually but lacks empirical validation across different geographic contexts and energy development types (renewable vs. fossil fuel extraction). Specific testing of the framework's predictive accuracy in quantifying trade-offs within distinct ecological zones and socio-economic settings is absent.
Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · 2026 · DOIAlthough the research results cannot be extrapolated to the level of the entire Romanian population, but only to certain segments, the authors consider the association of consumption behaviour with two important factors, which have not been analysed in the scientific literature so far, to be a success.
Adoption of Voluntary Measures for Reducing Electricity Consumption in the REPowerEU Plan Context: A Romanian Consumer Perspective · 2023 · DOIAbstract Rural landscapes are under increasing development pressure from utility‐scale solar (USS) energy facilities while public attitudes toward these facilities remain poorly documented and understood.
Reacting to the Rural Burden: Understanding Opposition to Utility‐Scale Solar Development in Upstate New York<sup>☆</sup> · 2023 · DOIWe argue that these mixed results are due to vast differences and significant limitations in research designs, which we mitigate through a large study (n = 16,200) of Americans’ attitudes toward energy projects.
Little is known about how diverse publics in the United States will respond to the advent of new energy sources, whether they involve a “second renaissance” for nuclear power, a dash to embrace hydraulic fracking for oil and natural gas, or emerging prospects for renewable energies like wind and solar power.
Given the consequences of this unresolved, quasi-theological argument, especially with regard to the future of nuclear technologies and especially the breeder, it is also very clear to me that we are currently lacking the necessary technological and economic data required for a fully rational resolution of the major energy issues.
Abstract Energy communities are gaining prominence across Europe, but little is known about factors that motivate individuals to join them.
In contrast, so-called energy efficiency programmes can involve wider activity portfolios across sectors and usages, which present both operational complexities and synergies that are understudied.
Finally, this research contributes to the academic discourse by filling an important gap in the literature concerning the socio-economic and institutional dimensions of SHPPs operations in Poland. Further pilot implementations and evaluations are warranted to assess their efficacy.
Barriers and management practices for small hydropower: The case of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region in Poland’s green energy transition · 2026 · DOIYet, few studies have examined how renewable energy itself is legitimized and how deeply such discourse categories are embedded in power relations, especially in the Global South.
Legitimizing wind energy in Brazil: power coalitions, discourse lock-in and transition dynamics · 2026 · DOIAlthough there is a strong aspirational intent for youth employment in the solar sector, due to the sector's rapid fragmented emergence and newness, little is known about the transitioning experiences of entrants, the nature of the available pathways, and the connections between education and work.
Shaping Learning Pathways in a Transitioning Sector: A Focus on Solar Jobs in South Africa · 2025 · DOI
Most-cited papers in Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy
- Just Transitions: A Political Ecology Critique · Antipode · 2022 · 119 citations
- Capturing the invisible. Sociotechnical imaginaries of energy. The critical overview · Science and Public Policy · 2021 · 86 citations
- Multiple transformations: theorizing energy vulnerability as a socio-spatial phenomenon · Geografiska Annaler Series B Human Geography · 2017 · 80 citations
- Open and collaborative innovation for the energy transition: An exploratory study · Technology in Society · 2022 · 79 citations
- Framing different energy futures? Comparing Fridays for Future and Extinction Rebellion in Germany · Futures · 2022 · 75 citations
- Renewable energy as a solution to climate change: Insights from a comprehensive study across nations · PLoS ONE · 2024 · 69 citations
- Public engagement for inclusive and sustainable governance of climate interventions · Nature Communications · 2024 · 68 citations
- Reacting to the Rural Burden: Understanding Opposition to Utility‐Scale Solar Development in Upstate New York<sup>☆</sup> · Rural Sociology · 2023 · 68 citations
- Imagining sustainable energy and mobility transitions: Valence, temporality, and radicalism in 38 visions of a low-carbon future · Social Studies of Science · 2020 · 67 citations
- The Politics of Technology Decline: Discursive Struggles over Coal Phase‐Out in the UK · Review of Policy Research · 2020 · 63 citations
Most recent work
- Operationalizing energy justice: mapping Norwegian youth preferences for renewable energy transitions · Environmental Research Energy · 2026
- Ethics in practice: navigating moral complexity in energy transitions · Environmental Sociology · 2026
- The Energy Commons and Commoning: Collective Action in Energy Transitions · International Journal of the Commons · 2026
- Simple teaching tools for hybrid energy systems: a learning media to support renewable energy literacy · Physics Education · 2026
- Exploring Trade Offs and Conflicts between Energy, Biodiversity and Human Livelihoods for Sustainable Development · Resources and Environmental Economics · 2026
- Assessment of biomass utilization pathways: a German case study · Journal of Industrial Ecology · 2026
- The ladder of citizen participation and social acceptance in nuclear power projects: Evidence from Ningde, China · Energy Policy · 2026
- Introducing Engineering Students to Machine Learning via Hands-on Wind Turbine Experiments · 2026
- Which energy, whose South? · Journal of Language and Politics · 2026
- Comparing potential biodiversity conflicts from renewable energy expansion in China at different centralization levels · Nature Ecology & Evolution · 2026
Find a gap in your own Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy sub-topic
This page shows what the Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.
Open the Research Gap Finder →