Frameworks for understanding transformations to sustainability – the ‘Multi-Level Perspective’ in socio-technical transitions research

This brief provides an overview of the Multi-Level Perspective (MLP), a 'big picture' analytical framework, integrative approach to understanding how transitions come about as co-evolutionary processes. It provides a framework for strategic thinking about long-term, transformative change. The MLP has shed light on transitions in energy, transport and food systems, and has explained why some innovations were adopted quickly in some places, but not in others. MLP research suggests that policy makers can actively nurture the emergence of conditions that favour stronger policies for sustainability. The MLP framework has been, and continues to be, developed and enriched with concepts from a wide range of social science disciplines.