Mattioli, G orcid.org/0000-0003-1309-554X (2016) Transport needs in a climate-constrained world. A novel framework to reconcile social and environmental sustainability in transport. Energy Research and Social Science, 18. pp. 118-128. ISSN 2214-6296
Abstract
The amount of energy and carbon emissions that is required to satisfy transport needs in developed countries is high, has increased rapidly in the past few decades, and is likely to continue to do so in the future. In some contexts, such as car-dependent peri-urban and rural areas, the satisfaction of basic needs has come to depend on extensive use of carbon-intensive transport modes. This creates a tension between social and environmental sustainability, and gives rise to justice dilemmas. In this article, a novel framework is proposed to conceptualise the connections and tensions between justice in transport and accessibility, on one hand, and the consequences of transport emissions on global and intergenerational justice, on the other hand. The framework is based on the integration of philosophical (human needs theory) and sociological (structuration theory) perspectives. While human needs are anthropological invariants, need satisfiers are relative, contextual and historical. Over time, satisfiers can become more travel- and carbon-intensive through unintentional structuration processes. This encourages a critical look towards how the role of transport in need satisfaction has changed over time, how it might change in the future, and the role of 'excess travel' practices in pushing the envelope of transport needs.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2016 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Transport; Human needs; Energy demand; Intergenerational justice; Climate change mitigation; Car dependence |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > Institute for Transport Studies (Leeds) > ITS: Sustainable Transport Policy (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number RCUK EP/K011723/1 EPSRC EP/M008096/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 12 May 2016 10:19 |
Last Modified: | 11 Apr 2018 13:22 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2016.03.025 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.erss.2016.03.025 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:97125 |