Green Energy Development and Transition: Have we seen this film before? – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)

The authors contend that the transition to renewable energy technologies, such as wind turbines and solar panels, relies on destructive mineral extraction that mirrors the harmful patterns of the fossil fuel era. Through initiatives like the WINDPLAN and Green Curses and Violent Conflicts projects, the researchers examine socio-environmental conflicts and protests against renewable projects in Norway, Uganda, Chile, and Bolivia. They argue that energy justice must move beyond simply increasing energy access to addressing the imbalances and contestations caused by the green transition's global value chain.

• Green energy development relies on the destructive extraction of non-renewable materials and minerals, with the volume of damaging land use-change and extraction increasing rather than decreasing.
• There is evidence that renewable energy development replicates historical patterns of capitalist development and fossil fuel industries, leading to socio-environmental conflicts and protests globally.
• Specific examples of contestation against renewable energy include opposition to wind turbines in Norway, hydro-electric dams in Uganda, and lithium mining in Chile and Bolivia.
• The authors advocate for a definition of energy justice that extends beyond combating energy poverty to address the imbalances and impacts occurring within the global value chain of green energy.

APA

McNeish, J.-A., & Vasstrøm, M. (2021). Green Energy Development and Transition: Have we seen this film before? – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://www.prio.org/comments/777

Chicago

McNeish, John-Andrew, and Mikaela Vasstrøm. Green Energy Development and Transition: Have we seen this film before? – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2021. https://www.prio.org/comments/777.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=McNeish |first1=John-Andrew |last2=Vasstrøm |first2=Mikaela |title=Green Energy Development and Transition: Have we seen this film before? – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=4 May 2021 |url=https://www.prio.org/comments/777 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{mcneish2021green, author = {McNeish, John-Andrew and Vasstrøm, Mikaela}, title = {{Green Energy Development and Transition: Have we seen this film before? – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)}}, publisher = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2021}, month = may, url = {https://www.prio.org/comments/777}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }