Recently, considerable focus, e.g., in the fifth IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) Assessment Report (2014) has been trained on why adaptation and mitigation have not been developed more than at present, with relatively few local government actions taken compared with, for example, more discursive policy agreement on the importance of the issue of climate change. Going beyond a focus on general limits and barriers, this comment suggests that one important issue is that climate change has not yet been sufficiently integrated into the state regulative structure of legislation and policy-making. A comparison between three cases suggests that local developments that are not supported in particular by binding regulation are unlikely to achieve the same general level of implementation as issues for which such regulative demands (and thereby also requirements for prioritization) exist. This constitutes an important consideration for the development of adaptation and mitigation as policy areas, including on the local level.

Trust is a prerequisite in all endeavours concerning uncertainty and interdependencies. By studying the development of a sustainable, high performing building this paper report on such an endeavour. The client implemented a collaborative project delivery method where key actors were brought together to collaboratively develop the project in the design phase. For the participants to collaborate, and thus work as a high-performance team, there was a need for trust. Therefore, this study addresses the following research questions: what was perceived as the key elements for building trust in this project? and, how did the key elements impact the trust-building in this project? The study is based on observations of weekly design meetings (so-called Big-Room sessions), as well as secondary data from a document study, and a supplementary questionnaire. Trust was essential as the participants were able to rely on each other’s expertise and work interdependently towards a common goal. The most prominent elements that affected trust were the start-up seminar, team composition, shared interest, support from management, joint problem solving, and the use of integrated concurrent engineering. These elements built and sustained trust due to their ability to create or positively impact the experiences, problem-solving, shared goals, reciprocity, and reasonable behaviour of the project team. The insight into how the collaborative project delivery method build trust may be valuable for practitioners and researchers alike.

In order to make existing private housing more energy efficient, various policies aim at influencing decisions made by homeowners regarding renovation and retrofitting in Scandinavia. Presenting two case studies from Denmark and Norway, we take one step back and observe the whole process of keeping a home habitable. Inspired by theories of Tim Ingold and Elizabeth Shove, we suggest calling this process “the practice of dwelling.” Rather than focusing on decisions and acts pertaining to retrofitting alone, we observe how maintenance and retrofitting are parts of an ongoing practice of dwelling. The cases demonstrate how decisions can be understood as embedded in the practice of dwelling, and how a readiness for decisions regarding retrofitting is created, or not, in this practice. We suggest shifting focus from the outcome of decisions, to attention toward the process that leads to readiness for making the decision in the first place.

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate the role of a particular energy calculator in enhancing the energy efficiency of existing homes by asking how this calculator was developed and how it is domesticated by craftspeople working as energy consultants. Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on qualitative interviews with users and producers of the energy calculator ( n = 22), as well as participation in energy consultation training. Findings: The paper finds that, in the energy calculator, there is a striking lack of connection between the domestication and script because of lack of energy consultants’ involvement in the design and implementation process. Practical implications: The enrolment of energy consultants as energy calculator users earlier in and throughout the design process could be valuable in making the transition to an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly building sector. Social implications: The paper argues for recognition of the role of energy consultants, especially craftspeople, as participants in the design process for tools of governance. This is a call to acknowledge the value of particular skills and experiences possessed by craftspeople doing home consultation. Originality/value: By understanding the intricate developer–user synchronicity in tools developed for upgrading the building sector, energy mitigation can be made more effective.

In this chapter, we argue that the management of values like safety and quality often leads to the creation of unnecessary tasks that interfere with the actual work being done. These tasks, referred to as “bullshit tasks”, are experienced as meaningless and time-consuming. We draw on two decades of empirical research in safety management and work practices in various industries and organizations. We highlight examples where regulations and management systems result in paperwork overload and hinder the efficiency of workers. We discuss how the sociotechnical system, including government regulations, management practices, and worker perspectives, contributes to the proliferation of bullshit tasks. We emphasize the need for a fundamental change in how regulations are made, enforced, and audited to address this issue, and suggest that organizations and managers can take steps to reduce bullshit tasks and improve the overall efficiency of work processes.

Gjennom antropologisk deltakelse og empatisk innlevelse kan vi berøre et implisitt potensial av mening jeg argumenter for at kan utgjøre en viktig kilde til innsikt. Fordi potensialet vi berører i stor grad er uformet, må det gis form for å tjene som antropologisk innsikt. Jeg beskriver derfor den antropologiske erkjennelsesprosessen som tingdannelse. Rammeverket er inspirert av den japanske kampkunsten aikido, der dynamikken mellom tomhet og form står sentralt, sammen med en tydelig vektlegging av kroppen som erkjennelsesinstrument. Jeg bruker fenomenet «takking og bukking» i Japan som eksempel. Det som begynte som en vag fornemmelse av kvaliteten i møtet når vi bukket mot hverandre og sa «takk», utviklet seg gjennom feltarbeidet og skrivingen til konkrete antropologiske innsikter og påstander. Ved å forholde seg systematisk til erkjennelsesprosessen som tingdannelse, er det mulig å diskutere forbindelsen mellom deltakelsens berøring med et fenomen, og de konkrete påstandene som fremmes om fenomenet. Dette kan bidra til å styrke deltakelse som metodisk prosjekt, med vekt på empati, resonans og berøring. Through anthropological participation and empathy we get in touch with an implicit potential of meaning that I argue may provide an important source of knowledge. Because this potential to a large extent is unformed, it needs to be given form in order to work as insight. Therefore I present anthropological research as a process manifesting things. The framework is inspired by the Japanese martial art aikido, characterized by the dynamic between form and emptiness, together with an emphasis on the body as instrument for understanding. I use the phenomenon «bowing and thanking» in Japan as example. What started as a vague sensation of the quality of our contact when we bowed towards each other and said «thank you» developed through fieldwork and writing into solid anthropological insights or assertions. By analyzing the knowledge development process as the manifestation of things in a systematic way, it is possible to discuss the connection between the participatory touch with a phenomenon and the concrete assertions made about it. This may contribute to strengthening participation as a methodological project, emphasizing empathy, resonance and touch.