The anatomy of change in urban infrastructure landscapes:cooking landscapes in Maputo, Mozambique

Abstract

Rapid urbanisation and global environmental transformations require rethinking the material and social configurations of cities. The concept of ‘transitions’ has gained traction to guide such processes of infrastructure change towards net-zero, resilient societies both in academic and policy conversations. In this paper, we examine what notions of change are deployed in these debates. Specifically, we argue that transition theory conceptualises change as triggered by intentional actions and innovations by emphasising the functional drivers leading change. While deliberate actions cause changes, not all change follows strategic intent. Instead, transitions also depend on contingent relations between social actors and material objects, which cannot always be planned or anticipated. The concept of ‘urban infrastructure landscape’ helps reveal the non-strategic aspects of transitions. The example of improved cookstoves in Maputo, Mozambique, demonstrates the change envisaged in current energy policy and the changes on the ground.

Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01426397.2022.2040971
Divisions: College of Engineering & Physical Sciences > School of Engineering and Technology > Mechanical, Biomedical & Design
College of Engineering & Physical Sciences
Aston University (General)
Additional Information: © 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Landscape Research Group Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
Uncontrolled Keywords: energy access,energy landscapes,improved cookstoves,Urban infrastructure landscapes,Geography, Planning and Development,General Environmental Science,Nature and Landscape Conservation,Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
Publication ISSN: 1469-9710
Last Modified: 03 Dec 2024 08:19
Date Deposited: 04 Apr 2022 09:03
Full Text Link:
Related URLs: http://www.scop ... tnerID=8YFLogxK (Scopus URL)
https://www.tan ... 97.2022.2040971 (Publisher URL)
PURE Output Type: Article
Published Date: 2022-03-22
Published Online Date: 2022-03-22
Accepted Date: 2021-11-08
Authors: Castán Broto, Vanesa
Robin, Enora
Whitehead, Timothy (ORCID Profile 0000-0001-8751-1484)

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