Crafting Climate Transitions from below

Crafting climate transitions from below: Craftspeople's role as advisors and builders We have focused on the role of craftspeople as (1) builders and (2) energy consultants. 1) To research the role of craftspeople as builders in the building industry we conducted field work at a large building site with high climate ambitions and conducted visits to other building sites and interviews. Our first observation is that the construction industry is currently undergoing major changes that, to some extent, overshadow the changes in construction practices related to climate change. These transformations are: Technologization in the form of pre-fabrication, robot technology and digital planning tools; new construction methods such as Lean Construction; new business models, where permanent employment is replaced with hired labour from an international market. Transformations related to climate must be understood in conjunction with the other transformations. Our research suggests that working conditions in the bulging industry might be just as important as education and training for the ability for craftspeople to contribute to climate change mitigations. In particular the transition from permanently employed craftspeople to the use of hired labour has negative consequences for the development of a climate-friendly construction practices. When companies no longer have permanent employees, craftspeople no longer form communities of practice, which are essential for nurturing and developing individual as well as collective skills. The loss of communities of practice has a direct impact on the ability of craftspeople to build energy efficiently and provide good advice on energy and climate. We observe that some contractors chose an opposite path, and rely on permanently employed craftspeople which are given more responsibility and more involvement in the business, in line with the Norwegian model of work. These contractors show that it is possible to compete with contractors who focus on providing low tenders by reducing labour costs. The investment in stable communities of practice, able to be involved in planning pays of through increased efficiency and fewer construction errors. Our suggestion is that this is also a better way to optimize energy efficiency. 2) To research the role of craftspeople as energy consultants in private homes we conducted interviews with craftspeople recruited as energy consultants and took part in consultancy. We focused on an energy consulting program managed by Enova, the Low Energy Program, the Housing Bank and the Builders Association. In the program master builders are trained as energy consultants and equipped with a specially developed energy calculator. Using the calculator they can suggest measures for homeowners that qualify for support for holistic energy upgrading. We found that craftspeople played an important role as a link between the government and the homes. Our findings indicate that they have rather good control over the advisory tools. Yet many craftspeople found the task of energy consultant difficult due to differences in the way craftspeople and government conceive a house and a renovation job. The energy consultant, in the role of craftsperson would not recommend the same solutions as the energy consultant in the role of representative of the government program. Our findings suggest that in most cases the consultant ended up giving advice based on craft-knowledge rather than the solutions the energy calculator and the support program suggested. Seen from a craftsperson's perspective, the program's template for upgrading is too ambitious for older houses and the costs are not matching the gains. By recommending this, the professional reputation of the craftsperson is put at risk because the advice is not considered the best for the customers, neither technically or economically. Our conclusion is that climate measures aimed at private dwellings could be more effective if they were co-designed with the craftspeople who work in the dwellings. A general conclusion is that the ability to involve craftspeople in development of climate policy can have positive effects. A challenge calling for more research is how to conduct a good dialogue between the different logics of craftsmanship and governance.

This project will focus on the building industry that plays a vital role in climate transitions as an object of climate adaption measures as well as a potential actor with respect to climate mitigation, for example through energy efficiency. In particular , we want to study emerging bottom-up activities aimed at strengthening the role of craftspeople in climate transitions and their related competence. The project consist of two subprojects: WP1) Craftspeople at work and WP2)Improving craftspeoples ability to act as climate advisors and WP3 dedicated to project management and dissemination.The focus in the first subproject is craftspeople and firms that do building on commercial basis. Through participating observation, interviews and video documentation, we will study the practice of crafting in the building marked. This subproject will follow up education and training in sustainable building. What happens to the acquired skills and practices when crafts- and journeymen enter the commercial building indus try? In the second subproject we will study the role of climate councelling in relation to the education and practice of craftspeople, and in relation to energy counselling in general. We will follow three cases over 3 years. The first is a pilot project "ENØKrådgiving" in Trondheim which is a low threshold counselling service. The second is a free public counselling service in the municipality of Asker that has been going on for some years. The third is the newly established master builder counselling se rvice certified by Enova. This service aims at deep renovation projects.