TY - JOUR

T1 - Afghanistan's energy sociotechnical imaginaries

T2 - Alternative visions in a conflict zone.

AU - Fahimi, Abdullah

AU - Upham, Paul

AU - Münch, Sybille

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier Ltd

PY - 2022/10/1

Y1 - 2022/10/1

N2 - Imaginaries are understood to be both discursive and cognitive constructs that shape behaviour, policies, and institutions – but how do longstanding imaginaries evolve in new circumstances, and how do they interact with existing power structures in changed circumstances? Drawing on conceptions of discursive power, this paper investigates the interplay of power with both new and old imaginaries in the case of Afghanistan, specifically regarding alternative energy futures. Employing an interpretive approach, we draw on document analysis and semi-structured interviews with elite stakeholders and policy observers, to provide an account of the relations between alternative energy futures imaginaries and political power. We demonstrate, how certain discursive practices are made possible, authorised and articulated through imaginative geographies. Critically, the government-advocated imaginary of Afghanistan as an energy corridor and hence an energy importer both represents the views of several powerful interests and concurs with the long-held idea of Afghanistan as a buffer state. In this way, political path dependencies are reinforced through a supportive imaginary, just as the dominant imaginary is itself reinforced by the main stakeholders. While in line with our interpretive epistemology we do not make claims for the specific configuration of imaginaries being generalisable elsewhere, we do find the general theoretical approach useful for understanding discursive aspects of conflict zone politics, particularly vis-à-vis energy system trajectories.

AB - Imaginaries are understood to be both discursive and cognitive constructs that shape behaviour, policies, and institutions – but how do longstanding imaginaries evolve in new circumstances, and how do they interact with existing power structures in changed circumstances? Drawing on conceptions of discursive power, this paper investigates the interplay of power with both new and old imaginaries in the case of Afghanistan, specifically regarding alternative energy futures. Employing an interpretive approach, we draw on document analysis and semi-structured interviews with elite stakeholders and policy observers, to provide an account of the relations between alternative energy futures imaginaries and political power. We demonstrate, how certain discursive practices are made possible, authorised and articulated through imaginative geographies. Critically, the government-advocated imaginary of Afghanistan as an energy corridor and hence an energy importer both represents the views of several powerful interests and concurs with the long-held idea of Afghanistan as a buffer state. In this way, political path dependencies are reinforced through a supportive imaginary, just as the dominant imaginary is itself reinforced by the main stakeholders. While in line with our interpretive epistemology we do not make claims for the specific configuration of imaginaries being generalisable elsewhere, we do find the general theoretical approach useful for understanding discursive aspects of conflict zone politics, particularly vis-à-vis energy system trajectories.

KW - Sustainability Governance

KW - Afghanistan

KW - Energy

KW - Geopolitics

KW - Power

KW - Sociotechnical imaginaries

KW - Afghanistan

KW - Energy

KW - Geopolitics

KW - Power

KW - Sociotechnical imaginaries

KW - Politics

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/938b6a23-b0c2-33b4-b2ef-583685ac6719/

U2 - 10.1016/j.polgeo.2022.102657

DO - 10.1016/j.polgeo.2022.102657

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 98

JO - Political Geography

JF - Political Geography

SN - 0962-6298

M1 - 102657

ER -