The spatial dynamics of niche trajectory: the case of wave energy

Abstract

This paper proposes that niches, as protected spaces where technologies are developed and articulated with societal needs, transcend territorial boundaries, encompassing communities and actions that span several spatial levels. To support this assertion, the paper builds on the socio-cognitive perspective to niche development and extends it, introducing a new dimension – space – thus broadening and “spatializing” the concept of technological niche. This framework is applied to the case of wave energy. Empirical research combines a generic analysis of the construction of an “overall niche space” with a detailed analysis of the processes taking place in Portugal, which was one of the pioneers in the emerging field. The results confirm the niche multi-spatial dynamics, showing that it is shaped by the interplay between a niche relational space constructed by actors’ actions and interactions, and the territorial effects introduced by their embeddedness in particular geographical and institutional settings.