This research survey aimed to provide an expansive overview of past and current research related to the study of various contexts of individual behaviour. It assessed their relevance for the work of InContext, and helped situate the work of InContext in the broader research landscape for sustainable behavioural and social change.

This report presents a document analysis on the four case studies that build on the InContext project’s WP3. The general purpose is to provide a better understanding on how niches of alternative more sustainable consumption and production practices are created, and how they can later be diffused or mainstreamed.

This empirical report presents the four case studies of the InContext project: GELA - GEmeinsam LAndwirtschaften, a community-supported agriculture project and Thursday Veggie Day, an initiative to reduce meat consumption, and Municipal Energy Transition Process and Emission-Zero cooperative, two projects for citizen-led investments in renewable energies. The study is available for download.

This synthesis report reflects on the four cases of alternative consumption and production niches observed in InContext. From the cross-examination of the empirical material, it distills tentative conclusions on what can be learnt from the emergence and governance patterns of these niches. The case study is available for download.

As part of the project InContext, Ecologic Institute has designed four posters concerned with sustainable lifestyle initiatives in the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria. The posters, illustrated with photos and maps, provide in-depth information on the process and results of the initiatives. They were displayed at the final project conference of InContext and are available for download.

Action research is the collaborative production of scientifically and socially relevant knowledge through a participatory process. Real-life problems are addressed and new theoretical insights gained. This research brief introduces the concepts of action research, sustainability transitions, and transition management. It presents key issues for conducting action research and how these have been dealt with in the practice of the research teams in the three communities of the InContext project. Furthermore it reflects on the role of the action researcher. The research brief is available for download.

From urban gardening and networks of sharing to community-owned wind farms: citizens' initiatives emerge all over Europe in a quest to find new answers to today's pressing challenges. This policy brief explores new forms of cooperation between local governments and these bottom-up initiatives. It argues that getting involved with initiatives helps local governments to be an active player in their community's change dynamics. This cooperation furthermore requires new ways of engaging and participating between the groups.

This policy brief outlines the main characteristics of this approach and the challenges that these pose for research funders. It discusses whether and how this kind of research can be scaled up and how EU funding mechanisms could support solution-oriented, transformative research. The policy brief is available for download.

On 6–7 June 2013, the final conference of InContext, together with the Informed Cities Forum 2013, took place in Berlin. It provided a creative platform for local initiatives, policymakers, and researchers to exchange insights, ideas, and experiences on transition processes. At the core of the conference was the question of how to create space for change and move towards better places, stronger communities, and resilient societies.

The three-year research project "InContext" identified framework conditions enabling societal transition towards an ecologically sound, economically successful and culturally diverse future. Action at local and individual levels is vital to bring the concept of sustainable development to life. However, policies aimed at initiating such local and individual transitions towards sustainability can often not achieve the desired change. Thus, the EU research project InContext has set out to investigate the conditions for creating sustainability transitions at the local and individual levels.