Indicateurs de transition énergétique à l’échelle locale : approche basée sur l’étude du discours et cas d’application au Nunavik

Abstract

The energy transition is the subject of a growing number of studies, but not all of them use the same definition. This a priori technical process also involves social, economic, cultural, political and environmental issues and factors. Furthermore, the study of transition is sensitive to the space-time prism through which it is analysed. The evolution of socio-technical systems differs from one region to another, and is not characterised in the same way depending on the spatio-temporal scale chosen. Sustainability assessment tools must therefore take into account the multidimensional aspect of their object of study, as well as its territorial and temporal anchorage. While multidisciplinary indicator series have such potential, not all of them exploit it. In fact, at least five shortcomings are common to a large number of them: definitional ambiguity, unbalanced focus on dimensions, lack of contextual relevance, lack of stakeholder participation, and methodological opacity. To address these issues, a new methodology for constructing a series of indicators is introduced. Drawing on an existing method, it proposes a mixed quantitative-qualitative approach based on textometric analysis of press discourse. It aims to indirectly take into account the perception of stakeholders. This object of study then serves as the basis for the construction of a thematic framework structuring the indicator selection process. In addition, the approach proposes an analysis based on a new concept of lexical echo characterising the interactions within this framework, thus highlighting the interweaving of the dimensions surrounding the energy transition. The methodology is then tested in the Nunavik region to assess its effectiveness and prospects for improvement. To do this, an inventory of the region's energy system and socio-economic context is drawn up beforehand, to make it easier to take account of its specific characteristics. The methodology was then applied to Nunavik. A press corpus of 164 texts was then concatenated and analysed. The result was a thematic framework structured around eight primary thematic classes: "sustainable socio-economic development", "residential energy and decentralised production", "centralised energy production", "lifestyles facing socio-technical and environmental challenges", "development of alternative energies and the case of the Inukjuak hydroelectric project", "concerted environmental protection", "climate change and biodiversity", and "aviation and air freight". These represent the various dimensions of the energy transition issues in Nunavik: energy, social, cultural, political and environmental. These eight classes are then broken down into a total of 33 more specific thematic sub-classes. Only the two most technical primary classes, "residential energy and decentralised production" and "centralised energy production", are supplemented by indicators, mainly because of limited resources. The result is a series of 28 technical indicators, with references to guide their application. However, the poor statistical coverage of the Nunavik region is an obstacle to finalising the series of indicators and calculating them. This application could, however, help build a data collection strategy for Nunavik, and contribute to the development of future northern energy policies. Finally, a number of recommendations are made regarding the future use of the methodology presented in order to compensate for the limitations identified by this initial application. In particular, it is suggested that the direct involvement of certain stakeholders or experts in the region would be useful and advantageous.

Date	22 Nov 2023
Original language	French
Awarding Institution	École de technologie supérieure
Supervisor	Didier Haillot (Supervisor), Stéphane Gibout (Co-supervisor) & Teva Meyer (Co-supervisor)