People and spaces: Toward an urban centered approach of adoption patterns of low carbon technologies

The adoption of technologies in the building and mobility sectors is a crucial lever for the decarbonization of cities. Innovations such as high-performance thermal insulation, heat pumps, district heating networks, electric vehicles, and electric bicycles can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance energy efficiency. However, the uptake and diffusion of these technologies remain low, and our understanding of adoption patterns, particularly at the urban scale, is limited. While the literature extensively documents the adoption of photovoltaic panels and insulation, there is a scarcity of studies that focus on the co-adoption of these technologies and analyze the heterogeneity of adoption patterns across space. This article aims to address this research gap at the city level, where local actors play a pivotal role in climate change policies. We challenge existing knowledge established at broader geographical scales to explore the socio-economic drivers, barriers, and geographic patterns of coadoption of low-carbon technologies in an urban environment. Using the Lausanne conurbation in Switzerland as a case study, we develop a theoretical framework based on a comprehensive literature review and test it with survey data collected from diverse population segments. Our analysis reveals that technology adoption patterns are highly spatialized, with significant barriers including high upfront costs, complexity of shared decision making among multiple stakeholders, and infrastructural requirements. By identifying these barriers, we propose targeted public policies to promote broader adoption of lowcarbon technologies, ultimately contributing to more sustainable urban environments