Stakeholder assessment for the introduction of sustainable energy and environmental technologies in Japan

Global environmental concerns call for a prompt introduction of sustainable energy and environmental technologies (SEETs) such as high-efficiency appliances and zero-emission vehicles. In reality, however, their introduction has been slow due to a number of complex factors that have not been systematically examined. This research adopted a holistic approach to analyzing elements surrounding the introduction of SEETs in Japan. Through an adapted version of stakeholder analysis, we identified twenty one categories of stakeholders and nine large categories of environmental factors that facilitate and/or obstruct the introduction of SEETs. The analysis reveals the diversity of stakeholders and environmental factors, the existence of multi-sectoral issues, and the influence of cognition/information-based resources. These suggest the need for a new forum, with a different set of participants and agenda, for preparing strategies for promoting SEETs. Although our research was based on the data from Japan, most of these findings have implications to policy-making processes in other countries and at the international level.