Abstract This essay describes an emerging “post-grid imaginary” that is informing visions of future collapse, growing scarcity, and deepening infrastructural fragmentation. By examining electrical grid failures in Lebanon and California, we can move beyond developmentalist assumptions about the supposedly different trajectories of the so-called Global North and South. The post-grid imaginary is at the center of a present and future struggle that is continuous with a global process that looks a lot like structural adjustment in the “Global South” and rampant privatization and austerity in the “Global North.” As states turn away from promises of endless expansion and universal access, the post-grid imaginary is one way in which states, private utilities, and individuals respond to the urgent need to transform the existing energy system. While a post-grid imaginary is not inevitable, it is an increasingly visible approach that can lead to geographical disconnection, uneven access, and infrastructural abandonment.

中文翻译：

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后电网的想象：电力、发电机和能源的未来

摘要 本文描述了一种新兴的“后网格想象”，它正在为未来崩溃、日益稀缺和加深基础设施碎片化的愿景提供信息。通过检查黎巴嫩和加利福尼亚的电网故障，我们可以超越发展主义假设，即所谓的全球南北轨迹可能不同。后电网的想象是当前和未来斗争的中心，这种斗争与全球进程相延续，看起来很像“全球南方”的结构调整和“全球北方”的猖獗的私有化和紧缩。随着各州背离无休止的扩张和普遍接入的承诺，后电网的想象是州、私人公用事业和个人应对转变现有能源系统的迫切需求的一种方式。