Problem structuring for transitions: The case of Swiss waste management Roland W. Scholz, Andy Spoerri *, Daniel J. Lang Institute for Environmental Decisions, Natural and Social Science Interface, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland 1. Introduction Transitions of socio-technical systems [1–3], defined as structured developments from one system state to another [4–7], have attracted increasing attention in discussions on how to attain sustainable development [8,9]. Due to the complexity of the systems under consideration, goal formation and transitions towards sustainable development require a specific kind of intervention support, namely, transition management. As such an integrative approach necessarily relies on comprehensive systems thinking, the consideration of multiple factors and actors from various domains [10] and on different scales [3,11] are key attributes of transition management [4,5]. In other words, it can benefit from transdisciplinarity, which is defined as a specific type of knowledge production [12] resulting from the collaboration between scientists and those outside academia [13]. Transdisciplinarity is considered particularly appropriate when coping with complex societal problems in terms of sustainable development [14–18], as these problems demand highly contextualized real world knowledge and valuations. Transition projects for sustainable development and the ambition of transdisciplinarity to stimulate a process of mutual learning between society and science imply knowledge integration through joint analysis and transformation of perceived problems. This, in particular, implies organizing the collaboration between scientists and non-scientists [5,10,19–21]. Futures xxx (2008) xxx–xxx ABSTRACT Transdisciplinarity is considered an appropriate approach in supporting transitions of complex socio-technical systems as such transitions demand highly contextualized real world knowledge and valuations. This holds especially true for the problem identification and structuring (initial) phase of a transition project, which aims at supporting goal formation based on a sound understanding and representation of the system’s current state and its dynamics. Throughout this phase, it is important that all relevant perspectives in terms of expertise and interests are considered and adequately fed into a process of knowledge integration. This paper presents in its first part the structuring for complex transitions (SCT) procedure aiming at this requirement. The procedure has been specifically designed for problem structuring in socio-technical systems in the initial phase of a transition project. The results of the procedure provide sound inputs for the next project phases and the transition methods applied therein, but can themselves already be used as fruitful orientations in strategy development. The second part of the paper briefly outlines the application of the SCT procedure to Swiss waste management. This application involved 48 participants who reached consensus on relevant impact factors and developed a shared vision for managing a complex transition process in the area of waste management. The approach is marked by high feasibility and socially robust results. ß 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. E-mail address: andy.spoerri@env.ethz.ch (A. Spoerri). G Model JFTR-1327; No of Pages 11 Please cite this article in press as: R.W. Scholz, et al., Futures (2008), doi:10.1016/j.futures.2008.09.013 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Futures journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/futures 0016-3287/$ – see front matter ß 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.futures.2008.09.013