Thinking Complex about Energy Transitions Lessons from the Implementation of LPG Gas Bottles in Kenya

• Published in: Politikon (Bucureşti) Vol. 56
• Main Author: Saligari, Serena
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 22.12.2023
• ISSN: 2414-6633; 2414-6633
• DOI: 10.22151/politikon.56.CON1

In the informal settlement of Langas, Kenya, access to domestic energy for cooking is a complex and multifaceted issue. Political and infrastructural efforts have promoted LPG gas bottles as a cleaner and more efficient alternative to traditional fuels like firewood and kerosene. However, residents demonstrate a diverse set of contextual concerns that challenge gas bottles’ uptake and prompt questions about how straightforward these energy transitions can be. The ethnographic study I conducted in Langas reveals a significant gap between the way energy transitions to clean fuels are imagined by energy policies and stakeholders and how these are experienced by end-users. While energy policies often reduce energy transitions to mere technological shifts, local communities show that access to energy is a social rather than a technical issue and requires a more inclusive, context-specific, and culturally sensitive approach so that energy solutions appropriate and responsive to their needs can be developed.