Resolving society's energy trilemma through the Energy Justice Metric Raphael J. Heffron a,n , Darren McCauley b , Benjamin K. Sovacool c,d a Energy and Natural Resources Law Institute, Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London, UK b University of St. Andrews, Fife, UK c AU-Herning, Aarhus University, Birk Centerpark 15, DK-7400 Herning, Denmark d Vermont Law School, Institute for Energy & the Environment, PO Box 96, 164 Chelsea Street, South Royalton, VT 05068-0444, United States HIGHLIGHTS  Energy justice advances energy policy with cosmopolitanism and new economic-thinking.  An Energy Justice Metric is developed and captures the dynamics of energy justice.  The Energy Justice Metric (EJM) compares countries, and energy infrastructure.  EJM provides an energy policy decision-making tool that is just and equitable. article info Article history: Received 25 May 2015 Received in revised form 17 August 2015 Accepted 28 August 2015 Keywords: Energy and ethics Energy justice Energy justice metric Energy trilemma Energy sustainability abstract Carbon dioxide emissions continue to increase to the detriment of society in many forms. One of the difficulties faced is the imbalance between the competing aims of economics, politics and the environ- ment which form the trilemma of energy policy. This article advances that this energy trilemma can be resolved through energy justice. Energy justice develops the debate on energy policy to one that high- lights cosmopolitanism, progresses thinking beyond economics and incorporates a new futuristic per- spective. To capture these dynamics of energy justice, this research developed an Energy Justice Metric (EJM) that involves the calculation of several metrics: (1) a country (national) EJM; (2) an EJM for dif- ferent energy infrastructure; and (3) an EJM which is incorporated into economic models that derive costs for energy infrastructure projects. An EJM is modeled for China, the European Union and the United States, and for different energy infrastructure in the United Kingdom. The EJM is plotted on a Ternary Phase Diagram which is used in the sciences for analyzing the relationship (trilemma) of three forms of matter. The development of an EJM can provide a tool for decision-making on energy policy and one that solves the energy trilemma with a just and equitable approach. & 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The energy trilemma is emerging as a key problem for gov- ernment. There are many variations to what the trilemma entails but they all have the same problems at its core – those emanating from economics, politics and the environment. The energy tri- lemma is visualized as a triangle and it is advanced here as ema- nating from the energy law and policy triangle-this is illustrated simplistically below in Fig. 1. The aim of trying to achieve a balance between the competing demands (of economics, politics and the environment) of the energy law and policy triangle is known as the energy trilemma; i.e. in essence, the challenge of balancing the energy law and policy triangle raises the question of the energy trilemma and how society aims to resolve this? Energy law and policy is in the center of the triangle and on the three vertices of the triangle are economics (for example, energy finance), politics (for example, energy security) and environment (for example, climate change mitigation) – though there are many other issues under each of the three issues. These three issues are trying to bring energy law and policy towards their direction. In essence, effective and efficient energy law and policy will balance these three aims to deliver the best outcome to society. However, if one examines energy law and policy in more detail often it is just one of these points that dominates the energy agenda; more often than not it is economics. It is proposed here that the solution to resolving the Energy Trilemma is through ‘Energy Justice’. Energy justice can achieve a Contents lists available at ScienceDirect journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol Energy Policy http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2015.08.033 0301-4215/& 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. n Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: r.heffron@qmul.ac.uk (R.J. Heffron), dam7@st-andrews.ac.uk (D. McCauley), BenjaminSo@hih.au.dk (B.K. Sovacool). Energy Policy 87 (2015) 168–176