InfraPOD

In this episodes we talk about carbon markets as a relatively new institutional infrastructure supporting our decarbonization efforts.

References

Carbon Footprint in Germany

https://www.bundesumweltministerium.de/media/kohlenstoffdioxid-fussabdruck-pro-kopf-in-deutschland

https://www.destatis.de/EN/Themes/Society-Environment/Environment/Environmental-Economic-Accounting/energyflows-emissions/emissions-energiy_flows.html

EU Emission Trading System

https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/carbon-markets/about-eu-ets_en

https://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/understanding-european-unions-emissions-trading-system

Cap-and-Trade vs. Carbon Tax

https://www.c2es.org/document/cap-and-trade-vs-taxes/

NGOs that sell official EU Carbon Allowances<...

In this episode we explain how co-accounting can be used by countries and companies to quantify their environmental impacts and discuss the benefits and limitations of these methods.

References

Sandoz fire: https://www.iksr.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Dokumente_en/Press_Releases/30_Jahre_nach_SANDOZ_Hintergrund.docx_de-DE_en-GB.pdf

GDP: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Beginners:GDP_-_What_is_gross_domestic_product_(GDP)%3F

GDP Critique: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/gdp-is-the-wrong-tool-for-measuring-what-matters/

A brief history of ecological accounting: https://www.aefr.eu/en...

In this episode we talk about the institutional set-up of the electricity market in Germany and the European Union. We explain the different options for buying and selling electricity, how prices are computed, and how an increase in renewable energies might change the market design in the future.

Main References

Agora Energiewende. (2019). Liberalisation of electricity markets in Germany. Agora Energiewende. https://www.agora-energiewende.org/fileadmin/Projekte/2019/Liberalisation_Power_Market/Liberalisation_Electricity_Markets_Germany_V1-0.pdf

Bundesnetzagentur. (2025). Monitoring report 2025. Bundesnetzagentur. https://data.bundesnetzagentur.de/Bundesnetzagentur/SharedDocs/Downloads/EN/Areas/ElectricityGas/CollectionCompanySpecificData/Monitoring/MonitoringReport2025...

In this episode we talk about liberalisation, one of the central reform movements in infrastructure governance during the last 30 years. We discuss the liberalisation of the electricity and telecommunication sectors in Germany, which is also intertwined with a larger movement on the EU level.

References

Bieling, H.-J. (2008). Liberalisierung und Privatisierung in Deutschland: Versuch einer Zwischenbilanz. WSI Mitteilungen 10/2008. https://www.wsi.de/data/wsimit_2008_10_bieling.pdf

Dewenter, Ralf; Haucap, Justus (2004) : Die Liberalisierung der Telekommunikationsbranche in Deutschland, Diskussionspapier, No. 27, https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/23614/1/paper_27.pdf

Serrallés, R. J. (2006). Electric energy r...

In the context of neoliberal reforms privatization is often presented as a way to make infrastructure service delivery more efficient and cost-effective. In this episode we try to give a strutured overview of potential avantages and disadvantages of both public and private service provision. We also discuss why public-private-partnerships are so popular and what are the challenges in the negotiation of such contracts.

References

Buse, K. & Bayliss, K. (2022). England's privatised water: profits over people and planet. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o2076

Castro, R. (2024). Regulation of Natural Monopolies. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-55251...

The internet is the fastest growing infrastructures in the world and while it already shapes our everyday life, it's impact will still grow in the future. In this episode we try to give you a basic understanding of how the internet works and how it may be different from other large networked systems.

References

General

https://www.cloudflare.com/de-de/learning/network-layer/how-does-the-internet-work/

Video makes up ~80% of online traffic: https://www.demandsage.com/video-marketing-statistics/

Complaint against Telekom AG regarding unequal treatment of different users/service: https://freiheitsrechte.org/ueber-die-gff...

In this episode we explore the concept of spatial justice and establish additional terminology to better understand and analyze related phenomena. We hope that this allows you to better recognize and describe instances of spatial injustice in your environment.

References

Theoretical Framework

Collin Yarbrough & Janille Smith-Colin (18 Nov 2025): Infrastructure (in)Justice: a multi-scalar framework and review of epistemic, restorative, and reparative justice dimensions, Transport Reviews, DOI: 10.1080/01441647.2025.2585037

Case Studies

Brackel, L., Boelens, R., Bruins, B., Doorn, N., & Pesch, U. (2023). People in PowerPoint pixels: Competing justice claims and scalar politics in water...

In this episode we are looking at theories about technological innovation to better understand the currently ongoing transition of our energy system. We discuss relevant components of the new energy system, political drivers and barriers, and hypothesize about what our energy system might look like in the future.

References

AG Energiebilanzen e.V. (2025). Energy consumption in Germany in 2024. Available at: https://ag-energiebilanzen.de/wp-content/uploads/AGEB_Jahresbericht2024_20250815_en.pdf

Meyer, T. (2024) Strom. Über Nostalgie, Zukunft und warum der Markt längst entschieden hat. ISBN: 9 783 769 351224

Innovation Curves

Rogers, E.M. (2003) Di...

In this episode we are retracing the historic development of the energy systems since earliest civilizations. Our use of energy has always been interrelated with human development, innovation, and progress. By learning about how the energy system has developed alongside human societies, we want to give you some context for the upcoming transition towards decarbonized energy systems.

Main reference

Rutter, P. & Keirstead, J. (2012). A brief history and the possible future of urban energy systems. Energy Policy. Volume 50. Pages 72-80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2012.03.072

Additional references

Syvitski et al. (2020). Extraordinary human...

What is “infrastructure”? Is it limited to roads, bridges, and energy systems or does it extend to ecosystems, care work, and social institutions?

In this opening episode we interrogate the concept of infrastructure from different perspectives. Moving beyond conventional definitions, we explore infrastructure as a system that is not only physical but also relational, institutional, and deeply embedded in human life.

Drawing on insights from systems theory, anthropology, and political economy, we discussion the expanding scope of infrastructure to include green (natural) systems and social reproduction processes.

References

Larkin, B. (2013). The poli...

In this episode we give a brief overview of what we will cover in the podcast.

If you have questions or feedback, please direct them to:

nadine.schroeder@tu-darmstadt.de