The critical role of political trust in the energy transition

Abstract

Achieving net‐zero CO ₂ emissions requires sustained collaboration between civil society and the private and public sectors across time and geographies, but low trust in and among these actors impedes coordinated action. This multidisciplinary review examines how different forms of trust, in particular political trust (i.e., trust between actors with differential power), shape the energy transition, addressing four core questions: How does trust impact energy project development and outcomes? How do the processes of building, maintaining, eroding, and repairing trust differ? What are the asymmetries in trust gain and loss? How does a project's history and stage determine which process is at play and whether trust repair is possible? A narrative literature review and analysis of fifteen case studies spanning diverse energy contexts identifies key trust dyads: government‐community, developer‐community, regulator‐developer. Mapping these trust dyads on project outcomes reveals when trust functions as either a barrier or a pathway to success. We complement our literature review and case analysis with primary data from stakeholder surveys and expert workshops that validate the real‐world relevance of trust research insights and identify the largest trust deficits and effective trust‐building strategies perceived by expert practitioners. Our findings across sources of evidence converge to show that political trust operates through distinct mechanisms across different actor relationships, with direct implications for project design, stakeholder engagement, and policy implementation. The review concludes by outlining future research directions and opportunities for cross‐disciplinary collaboration to address trust challenges in the energy transition.