Municipal solid waste (MSW) management is an urgent global challenge, with cities at the forefront due to their high waste generation and environmental impacts. Despite their potential to implement transformative solutions, MSW management in urban contexts remains a "wicked problem," involving diverse stakeholders, complex challenges, and significant uncertainties.

This research applies the framework of sustainability transitions to explore how small-scale sustainability experiments can address these challenges by bridging long-term visions with actionable short-term solutions through iterative, multi-stakeholder processes. Using China—the world’s largest MSW producer with a unique top-down governance structure—as a case study, the research investigates two key questions: (1) How do the roles, interactions, and strategies of diverse actors evolve and contribute to forming sustainability experiments? (2) What critical factors and synergies determine the success of these experiments in China's socio-political and institutional context?

The findings demonstrate that NGOs, municipal governments, businesses, and inter-organizational alliances play critical roles in mobilizing resources, aligning stakeholder interests, and building long-term linkages to address waste challenges collaboratively, albeit their roles and influence evolve over time. NGOs are particularly significant, though their impact varies across cities depending on the level of institutional recognition and support they receive. This research also identifies three successful causal pathways that underpin effective sustainability experiments: (1) dedicated participants supported by strong community engagement, (2) committed actors backed by local government involvement, and (3) robust grassroots leadership enabled by responsible and responsive local governance.

By advancing knowledge on actor dynamics, critical factors, and the interplay of Chinese institutional and social dimensions, this research contributes to the field of sustainability transitions and offers practical insights for effective urban waste management initiatives.SHen

About the Speaker

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Shengnan is a Ph.D. candidate at the Fenner School of Environment and Society, where she has been conducting research since February 2021. Her work centers on innovative community waste management experiments in China, drawing on theories from system innovation and sustainability transitions. Shengnan’s research aims to provide insights into how diverse actors shape these experiments, adapt their roles, and apply strategic actions to drive impactful outcomes. Additionally, she seeks to uncover the underlying mechanisms and identify key success factors and strategies that support these experiments' contributions to broader societal change.