Although the socio-economic development of many nations during the last two centuries has been very impressive, there are many issues questioning the sustainability of this development. Questions have been raised whether increased consumption will lead to increased happiness, or whether people...

The paper traces the rise and decline of solar cell commercialization efforts during the 1970s and early 1980s in the United States. It shows how technology policies for photovoltaic appliances gained and lost support in a time of increasing uncertainty about future resource supplies and the...

The paper sketches out a theoretical framework for analysing the interplaybetween eco-efficiency, cognition and institutions. It derives from analyticalshortfalls of the prevailing literature, which features strongly engineering andbusiness economics, by using insights from New Institutional...

Freiwillige Feuerwehren sind in vielen ländlichen Räumen Europas eine etablierte Einrichtung der Daseinsvorsorge.Trotz dieser Allgegenwärtigkeit sehen sich viele Ortsfeuerwehren bei der Erfüllung ihrer Aufgaben mit existenziellen Herausforderungen konfrontiert. Fragen wie die Durchführung...

How can economic theory explain the reasons why consumers adopt innovations? Using the example of innovations in washing machines two approaches are compared. The first focuses in the manner of household production theory on changes in constraints without specifying preferences, leading to the...

The clean development mechanism (CDM) under the Kyoto Protocol may induce a technological change in developing countries. As an alternative to the CDM-regime, developing countries may accept a (generous) cap on their own emissions, let domestic producers invest in new efficient technologies, and...