The Routledge Research Companion to Energy Geographies

The interconnections between energy and geography lie at the heart of contemporary societies: From recent events in Georgia, Chechnya, Crimea, Sudan, Syria, the South China Sea, and the Strait of Hormuz - no less the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan - to the forms and functions of cities, the heating and cooling of homes, and the fuels that move people and goods. Increasingly energy is becoming the central concern of many strands of geographical inquiry, from environmental impacts and potential solutions to the balance of economic and politics power and the effect of energy on our lives, cultures and social interaction. However, the black box of energy demand and culture in energy research remains unopened, especially in terms of the social practices that underpin energy consumption within different material sites. Debates around locations and processes of energy production frequently fail to take into account the complex energy chains that allow various fuels and services to be distributed across wide geographical areas. Providing an integrated perspective on the relationship between energy and geography, this Research Companion offers a novel conceptual framework for studying the multiple facets of security, sustainability, space and place as they relate to energy, while foregrounding such themes in current debates within the disciplines of human geography, planning, environmental science, economics and political science. Demonstrating how a geographic approach towards energy can aid decision-making pathways in the domains of security, social justice, and environment, this book also develops policy-relevant insights.

Stefan Bouzarovski is Professor of Geography and Director of the Centre for Urban Resilience and Energy at University of Manchester, UK. Martin J Pasqualetti is Professor at the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University and Vanesa Castan Broto is Lecturer in the Development Planning Unit at University College London, UK