No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance
Abstract Background Problems such as climate change, environmental pollution, nuclear disposal and unsustainable production and consumption share a common feature: they pose long-term challenges because of their complex nature, potentially severe consequences, and the demanding problem-solving paths...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Energy, Sustainability and Society |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13705-025-00513-3 |
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| author | Dirk Scheer Sandra Venghaus Stefania Sardo Sascha Stark Sophie Kuppler Michael W. Schmidt Carsten Hoyer-Klick |
| author_facet | Dirk Scheer Sandra Venghaus Stefania Sardo Sascha Stark Sophie Kuppler Michael W. Schmidt Carsten Hoyer-Klick |
| author_sort | Dirk Scheer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Problems such as climate change, environmental pollution, nuclear disposal and unsustainable production and consumption share a common feature: they pose long-term challenges because of their complex nature, potentially severe consequences, and the demanding problem-solving paths. These challenges may have long-lasting impacts on both present and future generations and, therefore, require to be addressed through a long-term governance perspective, i.e., coherent and consistent policy-making across sectors, institutions, and temporal scales. Dealing with these challenges is a core task of policy-making in modern societies, which requires problem-solving skills and capabilities. In this context, we identify long-term governance traces in the literature, illustrate the case of energy transition towards renewable energy systems as a long-term governance case, and elaborate on the scope and definition of long-term governance and its research. Main text We elaborate an analytical framework for long-term governance (LTG), based on five building blocks: the ‘environment’, which details the policy-making arena; the ‘policy issues’, which elaborates on the problems to be dealt with by LTG; the ‘key challenges and driving force’, revealing LTG mechanisms; the ‘key strategies’, in which promising approaches for LTG are identified; and the ‘policy cycle’, where governance impacts on different policy phases are discussed. In essence, we understand long-term governance at its core as a reflexive policy-making process to address significant enduring and persistent problems within a strategy-based decision-making arena to best prepare for, navigate through, and experiment with a changing environment. Conclusions The framework does not describe specific processes or individual cases in detail. Instead, it should be understood as an illustration of long-term governance characteristics at a more general level. Such a framework may help to structure the field of long-term policy-making, guide future research on conceptual, comparative, and empirical in-depth studies, and may provide orientation and action knowledge for making our governance system sustainable. Stimulating and broadening research on long-term issues seems indispensable, given the existence of several ‘grand challenges’ that require successful long-term governance. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4dfba5acef0e44f0a4817a1a60d2b579 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2192-0567 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energy, Sustainability and Society |
| spelling | doaj-art-4dfba5acef0e44f0a4817a1a60d2b5792025-02-02T12:35:49ZengBMCEnergy, Sustainability and Society2192-05672025-01-0115112210.1186/s13705-025-00513-3No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governanceDirk Scheer0Sandra Venghaus1Stefania Sardo2Sascha Stark3Sophie Kuppler4Michael W. Schmidt5Carsten Hoyer-Klick6Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)Institute of Energy and Climate Research, Systems Analysis and Technology Evaluation (IEK-STE), Forschungszentrum JülichInstitute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)Institute of Energy and Climate Research, Systems Analysis and Technology Evaluation (IEK-STE), Forschungszentrum JülichInstitute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)Department of Energy Systems Analysis, Institute of Networked Energy Systems, German Aerospace CenterAbstract Background Problems such as climate change, environmental pollution, nuclear disposal and unsustainable production and consumption share a common feature: they pose long-term challenges because of their complex nature, potentially severe consequences, and the demanding problem-solving paths. These challenges may have long-lasting impacts on both present and future generations and, therefore, require to be addressed through a long-term governance perspective, i.e., coherent and consistent policy-making across sectors, institutions, and temporal scales. Dealing with these challenges is a core task of policy-making in modern societies, which requires problem-solving skills and capabilities. In this context, we identify long-term governance traces in the literature, illustrate the case of energy transition towards renewable energy systems as a long-term governance case, and elaborate on the scope and definition of long-term governance and its research. Main text We elaborate an analytical framework for long-term governance (LTG), based on five building blocks: the ‘environment’, which details the policy-making arena; the ‘policy issues’, which elaborates on the problems to be dealt with by LTG; the ‘key challenges and driving force’, revealing LTG mechanisms; the ‘key strategies’, in which promising approaches for LTG are identified; and the ‘policy cycle’, where governance impacts on different policy phases are discussed. In essence, we understand long-term governance at its core as a reflexive policy-making process to address significant enduring and persistent problems within a strategy-based decision-making arena to best prepare for, navigate through, and experiment with a changing environment. Conclusions The framework does not describe specific processes or individual cases in detail. Instead, it should be understood as an illustration of long-term governance characteristics at a more general level. Such a framework may help to structure the field of long-term policy-making, guide future research on conceptual, comparative, and empirical in-depth studies, and may provide orientation and action knowledge for making our governance system sustainable. Stimulating and broadening research on long-term issues seems indispensable, given the existence of several ‘grand challenges’ that require successful long-term governance.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13705-025-00513-3Long-term governanceConceptual frameworkGrand challengesSystemic and societal changeRenewable energy systems |
| spellingShingle | Dirk Scheer Sandra Venghaus Stefania Sardo Sascha Stark Sophie Kuppler Michael W. Schmidt Carsten Hoyer-Klick No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance Energy, Sustainability and Society Long-term governance Conceptual framework Grand challenges Systemic and societal change Renewable energy systems |
| title | No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance |
| title_full | No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance |
| title_fullStr | No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance |
| title_full_unstemmed | No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance |
| title_short | No easy way out: towards a framework concept of long-term governance |
| title_sort | no easy way out towards a framework concept of long term governance |
| topic | Long-term governance Conceptual framework Grand challenges Systemic and societal change Renewable energy systems |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13705-025-00513-3 |
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