Niche-based policies (e.g. strategic niche management (SNM)) that advocate nurturing innovations in protected space (i.e. niches) are among novel policy approaches, which aim to facilitate the adoption of sustainability innovations. Despite being an intuitively appealing approach, there is a remarkable absence of specific guiding principles regarding the design of such policies. This absence is mainly due to the dynamic complexity of the innovation development and diffusion processes. This study aims to analyze niche management strategies, and the resulting diffusion dynamics with the help of an abstract simulation model. Using the model in a test ground for exploration, plausible diffusion cases are identified an analyzed. Furthermore, risky cases that result in "expensive failures" are also highlighted.
展开▼
