TY - JOUR

T1 - Analysing the potential for sustainable e-mobility - The case of Germany

AU - Augenstein, Karoline

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2014 Elsevier B.V.

PY - 2015/3/1

Y1 - 2015/3/1

N2 - The current momentum in the electrification of the car fuels hope for a transition in mobility. However, electric vehicles have failed before and it is thus asked: What is the potential of e-mobility developing as a sustainable system innovation? In order to deal with this challenge analytically, a theoretical framework is developed: the concepts of transformative capacity of a new technology (do electric vehicles trigger 'social' innovations, e.g. new business models or use patterns?) and system adaptability (how stable is the mobility regime?) are introduced and the issue of sustainability is discussed. This framework will be explored for the German innovation system for e-mobility. It can be shown that electric cars will only be successful when part of a system innovation and that the German innovation system is dominated by regime actors and thus potentially used as a way to fend off more substantial change.

AB - The current momentum in the electrification of the car fuels hope for a transition in mobility. However, electric vehicles have failed before and it is thus asked: What is the potential of e-mobility developing as a sustainable system innovation? In order to deal with this challenge analytically, a theoretical framework is developed: the concepts of transformative capacity of a new technology (do electric vehicles trigger 'social' innovations, e.g. new business models or use patterns?) and system adaptability (how stable is the mobility regime?) are introduced and the issue of sustainability is discussed. This framework will be explored for the German innovation system for e-mobility. It can be shown that electric cars will only be successful when part of a system innovation and that the German innovation system is dominated by regime actors and thus potentially used as a way to fend off more substantial change.

KW - Co-evolution

KW - E-mobility

KW - Multi-level perspective

KW - Sustainability in transitions

KW - Sustainability Science

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84923072183&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.eist.2014.05.002

DO - 10.1016/j.eist.2014.05.002

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:84923072183

VL - 14

SP - 101

EP - 115

JO - Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions

JF - Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions

SN - 2210-4224

ER -