A major starting point in industrial ecology (IE) is that reaching ecological sustainability requires understanding relations between human actions and material (tangible) flows. IE studies have enabled assessments of different technical and sociotechnical configurations but only to a limited degree provided concepts that support the design of interventions for industrial ecologies. We contribute by proposing a sociomaterial flow approach , here applied to life cycle thinking. After problematizing some common concepts in IE, the key concepts, a procedure, and some applied variants of the proposed sociomaterial approach are presented. The approach is theoretically grounded in related sociomaterial research. This body of theories underpins our conceptualization of how flows in, for example, a product life cycle can be related to nets of human actions within one rather than several analytical frames. The sociomaterial interaction point (SMIP) is a key concept in our approach for the sociomaterial connection between material flows and actor networks. A SMIP can be described as the interactions where humans come closest to the flows. The conceptualization of the methodology provides a framework for exploring actor and action networks shaping material flows and a basis for a relational analysis of governance, organization, and management of the flows in industrial ecologies. A sociomaterial approach to flow studies can therefore help in designing more concrete sustainability interventions in industrial ecologies.

Energy communities can potentially advance just transitions towards low-carbon systems by devolving energy production and consumption to local scales. During vibrant debates on evolving energy geographies for more than a decade, human geographers have engaged with conceptualization and emergent models of energy communities in generative ways. We argue for a research agenda where these understandings of space, place and scale enhance research on energy communities. Three points hold particular importance and relevance for this agenda: (a) Pluralising understandings of energy communities, (b) Spatializing perspectives on the potential of energy communities to advance just transitions, and (c) Contextually situating technological-energy innovation strategies.

Environmental governance is commonly performed through recycling, but its effects are often difficult to predict. Studies have covered the environmental impacts and organizational structures of recycling and other circular economy governance, but only to a small degree related organization to environmental performance. We have therefore explored a methodological contribution for better understanding. We have applied and tested a hybrid, socio-material, approach, a product chain organization (PCO) study, in a comparison of governance of metal packaging product flows in Sweden and the Netherlands. A PCO study is a systematic and nuanced exploration of how nets of actions and actors shape environmental impacts. We identified that the policies in the two countries have focused on combined recycling rates, which has indicated superior Dutch governance. We, however, have discerned how various actions have been environmentally relevant, regarding inaccurate statistics, combining of waste streams, and consumption. We conclude that the test case on packaging shows how a PCO study can complement other approaches with a nuanced understanding of the environmental effects of governance toward a circular economy.