Agent Based Modelling for Decision Making in Energy Policy

The paper describes a decision-making exploratory modelling approach to simulate different situations leading to a sustainable consumption of energy. An Agent Based Model (ABM) is proposed in order to study the individual and collective behavioural changes toward environmental sustainability using ICT-based services, the SAM4SN (Spread of Awareness Model for Social Norms) model. It explores the role of awareness in the consumption of a resource. Simulating how environmental awareness spreads is an interdisciplinary issue that involves ICT, energy and environmental science, as well as social and behavioural sciences. The agents of SAM4SN represent households whose consumption of energy has to be reduced. Agents influence each other. Such influence improves their awareness that, in turn, impacts on resource consumption. The social influence plays an important role in spreading awareness. The model includes the role of smart metering functions. The role of the sustainability tipping point in decision-making is introduced.