Images of Light - Is phasing out the solution?

Due to a combination of reasons such as climate change, peak oil, security, etc., especially EU and several national governments have an increased focus on a transformation of the current energy systems through reduction of energy consumption and increased use of renewable energy sources.In 2005 approximately 20% of the world’s total energy consumption was consumed by lighting (Brown, 2010) which calls for attention to how energy consumption from lighting may be reduced. A strategy for phasing out the worst-performing light bulbs for domestic use is included in the European Ecodesign directive (2005/32/EC), constantly raising the performance standards. Various lighting technologies are now on the market, however with fluctuating quality, which, among other things, affect the rate households adopting new technologies (Krantz and Bladh, 2008) (Wall and Crosbie, 2009). However, aspects such as culture and routine also seem to influence the adaptation rate (Wall and Crosbie 2009, Krantz and Bladh, 2008, Gram-Hanssen 2005), and these aspects may not be as recognized in the strategies.In Denmark, people have to some extent been hoarding the incandescent light bulbs through the steps of banning the incandescent bulb[1], which seem to imply that some people oppose this move. However, some people are reaching out for the new lighting technologies, especially the light emitting diodes (LED), and it is interesting to analyze why these people, the so-called front runners, have chosen to incorporate this technology in their homes. This paper will present the initial studies of how front-runners have incorporated the technology, why they have, and how/whether it has influenced their everyday life practices of which lighting engage with. The study is done through semi-structured interviews inspired by social practice theory (Gram-Hanssen 2011, Røpke 2009 and Shove & Pantzar 2005) and domestication theory (Pantzar 1997, Lethonen 2003). In this way, actors and factors are identified that have influenced people towards a system-configuration that ‘seem to work’ for them. These factors can be difficult to generalize due to the focus on front-runners who may not represent the average household in this sense, and the conclusions should be considered as results of an extreme/exemplary case study (Yin, 2003)