Trasformismo: Advancing understandings of the relationship between stability and change in transitions

Transitions research explores the dimensions and loci of stability and change. In theorising the interrelation between the two, the neo-Gramscian notion of trasformismo stipulates how they can be co-constitutive of one another. Trasformismo denotes the ability to accommodate pressures to ensure that socio-technical reconfigurations do not disrupt prevailing social relations and distributions of political power. In this way, the concept describes a process of stability through change or change in the pursuit of stability: of re-ordering incumbent power to manage and contain destabilising forces. In this perspective, we introduce a dynamic understanding of trasformismo, highlighting the relevance of the analytical questions it raises for analysis of both socio-technical reconfigurations and broader politico-economic transformations. With this, we seek to inform debates on stability and change in transitions, directing attention to the questions of what is (de)stabilised, how, by whom, and for what purpose.