Household innovation and agency in sustainability transitions

• Introduces a special issue on households in transitions. • Proposes an open-box approach to studying households. • Introduces six themes relevant to the study of households. • Provides 10 takeaways and avenues for future research. Households have so far received limited and narrow attention in the sustainability transitions literature. This is despite households being recognised routinely in sustainability policies, albeit also often from a rather narrow perspective. In this editorial to the special issue on household innovation and agency in sustainability transitions, we conceptualise households as a social unit, scale, and site that offers a fruitful avenue for research on, and the governance of, sustainability transitions. The editorial introduces 16 articles that make up this special issue and identifies 10 key contributions to transition research, policy and practice. Ultimately, the findings in this special issue recognise increased potential, willingness, possibilities and activity of diverse types of households to participate in sustainability transitions by changing social practices and relationships in the home, and shaping the social context by reaching into the realms of politics, professions, community and business. At the same time the collection recognises that there are limits to what is achievable, not the least within the constraining environment of existing socio-technical systems and politicized contexts.