“Energy Humanities” (EH) names the study of the cultural and social dimensions of energy systems. EH provides insights into the social life of energy: what we have learned about the social impact of past energy paradigms and what this might teach us about the potential and the limitations of future energy systems. EH can also help us to imagine answers to questions for which the past provides no template or model, including how we might live with the use of less energy per person than we do at present. EH draws on the full spectrum of methods in the humanities, arts, and humanistic social sciences: from discourse analysis and the interpretation of representations to the creation of artwork in various media, and from academic publication and conference organizing to public workshops, gallery curation, and urban planning.

One focus of EH is the exploration of the complex social and cultural processes involved in energy transition – the shift from fossil fuels to other forms of energy. Imagining and reimagining the social is a fundamental part of energy transition-not supplemental to technological solutions, but integral to how we shape our future communities. EH plays an important role in the multi-directional engagement necessary at every stage of energy transition, from imagining new energy futures, to creating technologies that respond to those imaginaries, to implementing those technologies and systems in ways that communities can embrace, to addressing the social and cultural changes that will necessarily accompany major changes to energy systems. Research in EH can influence the types of technologies produced, such that new sources and systems respond in more socially equitable ways to the needs of intersectional communities, reducing the social disparity produced by current energy sources and systems. EH also engages with communities about the potential and limitations of new technologies, creating greater energy literacy about the challenges and opportunities of energy transition.

To date, energy transition has taken place only haltingly and to a limited degree. This is due to a range of energy impasses—practices and processes that have impeded energy transition. In order to overcome the current energy impasse we must transform myriad aspects of social and cultural life (some of which might seem unrelated to energy), including political systems, built environments, educational programs, business operations, policy positions, gender relations, social power dynamics, and artistic and cultural practices. As one of its most significant contributions to energy transition, EH explores the complex, mutli-scalar dimension of energy impasse so as to understand more fully how we might achieve energy transition on a global scale and as quickly as possible.