An earlier GERPISA International Research programme entitled “Sustainable development and the automobile industry” demonstrated that sustainability issues comprise a leading vector of change for automotive markets, technologies and value chains. It also revealed that questions pertaining to the sustainable development of the automobile product are just as meaningful in emerging spaces as they are in the older developed countries. This makes it essential that issues revolving around driving systems or new forms of access (which can be more or less limited and/or shared) be fully integrated into any examination of the new automotive landscapes’ progressive structuring. The magnitude of the changes putting pressure on different automotive system actors to adapt their driving systems and acclimatize to radically new market environments have had a destabilising effect on organisations. These actors are having to open up to other partners coming from industries that are not part of their customary field of influence. They are also having to develop much more proactive relationships with public policymakers.
Towards this end, this second section of our call for communications invites all researchers interested in current experiments promoting a transition towards greater sustainability within this industry and market, and involving all different forms of mobility. Whether the focus is on public policy, manufacturers’ innovation strategies and/or other value chain issues, regions/spaces where mobility innovation is taking place, the papers focusing on these experiments and their adaptability are of great interest.
