- Governing sustainability in secondary cities of the Global South
- Three sides to every story: Gender perspectives in energy transition pathways in Canada, Kenya and Spain
- Shaping a sustainable and low-carbon recovery that spurs industry transition
- Assessing the gender and social equity dimensions of energy transitions
- Learning from Nordic cities on climate action
Oliver Johnson is Head of Climate, Energy and Society Unit at SEI Headquarters in Stockholm. He is also Head of Secretariat for the Leadership Group for Industry Transition, an initiative led by the Governments of India and Sweden that brings together countries and companies committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions from industry by 2050. Oliver has over 12 years’ experience in the field of sustainable energy and climate change, focusing on low-carbon innovation, energy sector governance and industry decarbonization.
He has undertaken work in research, policy advice, consultancy, teaching and development project management across the globe and at many levels, from grassroots NGOs to international organizations. Oliver’s research interests lie in understanding complexities associated with transitioning to more sustainable energy systems and how different actors seek to shape and frame the process. In particular, he is concerned with how new technologies and services are diffused within society and how to address deeper barriers to diffusion associated with technologies, infrastructures, markets, government policies and regulation, user practices, social norms and cultural meaning.
Oliver joined SEI in August 2013, spending four years at the SEI Africa Centre in Nairobi and one and a half years at the SEI Asia Centre in Bangkok, before moving to SEI HQ in Stockholm in December 2018. Prior to joining SEI, Oliver worked for the German Development Institute (DIE) in Bonn and at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.
Oliver has a Ph.D. in Science and Technology Policy Studies from SPRU (Science & Technology Policy Research) at the University of Sussex. His doctoral work focused on ownership and knowledge in electricity reform in Ghana and Tanzania. He also has an MA in International Studies from the University Leeds and a BSc (Hons) in Physics from the University of Nottingham.