Place-based decarbonisation in the United Kingdom: Spatial dynamics, community engagement, and co-benefits

Based on a socio-technical literature review and comparative case studies, this paper analyses the place-based processes of industrial decarbonisation in the United Kingdom (UK). It addresses three questions: how industrial clusters with concentrated versus dispersed spatial configurations contribute differently to the UK’s industrial decarbonisation; what the spatial determinants are that influence the success and challenges for place-based decarbonisation; and how spatial analysis and geographical considerations can enhance targeted strategies for industrial decarbonisation across diverse UK regions. This paper reveals that industrial decarbonisation is a territorially embedded process rather than a uniform technological transition. It further demonstrates that inclusive community engagement fosters trust, legitimacy, and knowledge production in industrial decarbonisation, and that decarbonisation generates co-benefits beyond emission reduction. This paper concludes that successful transitions require spatially sensitive, socially legitimate, and institutionally coordinated pathways that align technology deployment with local conditions and regional development goals.