Co-Creating Renewable Energy Policy through Critical Systems Heuristics and Analytic Hierarchy Process: A Boundary-Critical Framework for Stakeholder-Legitimate Green Energy Governance

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 PhD Candidate of Business Policy Making at SR.C.(Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch)

2 Associate Professor, Department of Management and Accounting, College of Farabi, University of Tehran, Iran

3 M.Sc. Student in Accounting, Daneshestan Institute of Higher Education, Saveh, Iran

Abstract

Renewable energy policy in fossil-fuel-dependent economies is often framed mainly around installed capacity, financial investment, and grid integration. This study examines how the boundaries of renewable energy policy in Iran are constructed and how they can be redesigned through an integrated Critical Systems Heuristics (CSH) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach. Using a mixed-method design, the study analyzes 24 semi-structured expert interviews and selected policy documents related to solar and wind development, investment mechanisms, grid access, institutional coordination, public participation, and environmental legitimacy. The qualitative phase identifies inductive codes, distinguishes current “is” conditions from desired “ought to be” conditions, and maps them onto the twelve CSH boundary questions. The results are aggregated into four governance dimensions: motivation, control, knowledge, and legitimacy. AHP is then applied to determine their relative importance and prioritize key governance challenges. The findings show that Iran’s renewable energy policy remains shaped by capacity-expansion logic, centralized institutional control, technical-economic expertise, and limited stakeholder representation. Legitimacy emerges as the most critical dimension, followed by control, knowledge, and motivation. The study contributes a boundary-critical framework for redesigning renewable energy governance toward more stakeholder-legitimate and strategically prioritized green energy policy.

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Advances in Energy and Materials Research

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 25 August 2026

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