Structuring West Germany's energy objectives

Abstract

For this article a comprehensive and politically legitimate list of criteria to evaluate energy systems was constructed from interviews with leading representatives of a broad spectrum of West German society. In the interviews, we probed the fundamental values of nine political and social organizations, including the Catholic and Lutheran Churches, the Federation of German Labour Unions, the Association of German Industries and the German Nature Society. A hierarchical representation of value criteria was logically structured for each group separately, and then aggregated into a combined ‘value tree’. The result facilitates communication and constructive compromise, promotes the creation of policy options and helps evaluate future energy systems.