Abstract
The sustainability of future bioenergy production
rests on more than continual improvements in its
environmental, economic, and social impacts. The emergence
of new biomass feedstocks, an expanding array of
conversion pathways, and expected increases in overall
bioenergy production are connecting diverse technical,
social, and policy communities. These stakeholder groups
have different—and potentially conflicting—values and
cultures, and therefore different goals and decision making
processes. Our aim is to discuss the implications of this
diversity for bioenergy researchers. The paper begins with a
discussion of bioenergy stakeholder groups and their varied
interests, and illustrates how this diversity complicates
efforts to define and promote ‘‘sustainable’’ bioenergy production.
We then discuss what this diversity means for
research practice. Researchers, we note, should be aware of
stakeholder values, information needs, and the factors
affecting stakeholder decision making if the knowledge they
generate is to reach its widest potential use. We point out
how stakeholder participation in research can increase the
relevance of its products, and argue that stakeholder values
should inform research questions and the choice of analytical
assumptions. Finally, we make the case that additional
natural science and technical research alone will not advance
sustainable bioenergy production, and that important
research gaps relate to understanding stakeholder decision
making and the need, from a broader social science perspective,
to develop processes to identify and accommodate
different value systems. While sustainability requires more
than improved scientific and technical understanding, the
need to understand stakeholder values and manage diversity
presents important research opportunities.