[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/11883\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003ESwitching people on to green power in Europe\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEurope has a common goal of clean energy and numerous paths towards it. One of the routes leads through playgrounds in Berlin.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOutdoor children\u2019s spaces in the German capital have been a focal point of efforts to inform women about the roles they can play in accelerating the EU\u2019s expansion of renewable energy such as solar and wind power and abandonment of fossil fuels including oil and natural gas.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAll aboard\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe idea is to spur bottom-up \u201cenergy communities\u201d that empower residents across Europe to influence infrastructure changes needed for the EU to achieve its 2050 climate-neutrality target.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018What can we learn to make sure that the energy transition is something which people from all kinds of backgrounds can get involved in?\u2019 said Dr Andrea Kollmann, principal research coordinator at the Energy Institute at Johannes Kepler University Linz in Austria.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EShe led a project that received EU funding to come up with answers. Called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/101022585\u0022\u003EDIALOGUES\u003C\/a\u003E, the project wrapped up in April 2024 after three years and brought together universities, research institutes and climate organisations in countries ranging from Austria and Germany to Switzerland and Turkey.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe DIALOGUES team organised \u201cCitizen Action Labs\u201d to promote awareness and understanding of changes in the energy landscape. That\u2019s where Berlin playgrounds enter the picture.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPrevious research had indicated that people with higher incomes and a technical educational background \u2013 often men rather than women \u2013 tended to be more engaged in the hands-on questions related to local energy supply and consumption. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs a result, the project partners in Berlin reached out to people who were unlikely to be involved but who have an important stake in the whole matter.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018In their case it was women,\u2019 said Kollmann.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMother movers\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EIt doesn\u2019t necessarily take an electric car or a photovoltaic panel on your roof to be an active energy citizen.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EDr Andrea Kollmann, DIALOGUES\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EShe said that, at the playgrounds, the team asked mothers to join discussions of two to three hours about \u201cenergy cooperatives\u201d \u2013 a business model in which residents jointly own and control an enterprise that promotes renewable power or energy savings.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Berlin discussions \u2013 four focus groups \u2013 took place between 2022 and 2024 and drew 41 participants in total. The team offered childcare at some of the sessions, enabling some mothers who might otherwise have been unable to take part to have their say.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMany of the women were part of Berlin\u2019s large community of Turkish migrants. Most had never heard of an energy cooperative and expressed interest in it, according to Kollmann.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It doesn\u2019t necessarily take an electric car or a photovoltaic panel on your roof to be an active energy citizen,\u2019 she said.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ELessons learned\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Swiss city of Geneva and the Bulgarian town of Belene were a basis for other project work.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn Geneva, where efforts by local authorities and companies to green energy production and consumption are relatively advanced, an action lab focused on the role of households and encouraged residents to take an active role.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA lab in Belene, where public participation in energy matters is a new idea, spurred people to talk about choices and raised general awareness.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne main takeaway from DIALOGUES as a whole is a need to create \u2013 or reinforce \u2013 ways for ordinary people to get involved in decision-making about energy and environmental policies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA second is that subsidies, tax incentives and other financial support are important in helping people invest in renewable energy. A third conclusion is that public support is often necessary for people to develop skills to participate in the energy transition.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ELocal power\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERenewable-energy communities feature in new European \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/eur-lex.europa.eu\/legal-content\/EN\/TXT\/?uri=CELEX%3A32023L2413\u0026amp;qid=1699364355105\u0022\u003Elegislation\u003C\/a\u003E aimed at expanding the market share of renewables to at least 42.5% in 2030 from 23% in 2022.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe idea is that, during Europe\u2019s increasing shift towards clean power, local actors can and will play growing roles ranging from altering consumption habits and shaping storage systems to anticipating labour demands and speeding up national approval procedures for renewable projects.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEnergy accounts for around three-quarters of Europe\u2019s greenhouse-gas emissions, highlighting the importance of the push to expand the supply of renewable sources.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELike Kollmann in Austria, Dr Annika Wolff in Finland has worked to remove practical barriers to local green-energy initiatives in the EU. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAn associate professor in user-centred software engineering at Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology, or LUT, Wolff led an EU-funded project that focused on helping widen energy options for people.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECalled \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/101022317\u0022\u003EGRETA\u003C\/a\u003E, the project ran for two and a half years through October 2023.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The starting point was how to empower people to take control of their own energy choices,\u2019 said Wolff.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EObstacle course\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project team conducted a Europe-wide survey of a total of 10 000 people, small businesses and policymakers in 16 EU countries ranging from Belgium and the Czech Republic to France and Poland.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe survey grouped participants based on information about how they consume energy, view power production and stay informed on related topics, among other things.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EThe starting point was how to empower people to take control of their own energy choices.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EDr Annika Wolff, GRETA\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe participants fell into six categories ranging from the most engaged and tech-savvy to indifferent. Middle categories included \u201cyoung mindfuls\u201d and \u201cresource-constrained\u201d.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe results indicated that 58% of participants were already actively taking part in the energy transition.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut the survey also found that a significant proportion of people was unlikely to get more involved without further support.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe biggest barriers for greater engagement were financial constraints, lack of knowledge and an attitude that one person can\u2019t make a difference, according to the survey, which also indicated that many people still expect governments to take the lead.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project showed that even involved and experienced people in the field can encounter energy-transition obstacles, according to Dr Lurian Klein, senior innovation developer at a Portugal-based climate-tech company named Cleanwatts Digital.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGRETA included six case studies in Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKlein was in charge of GRETA\u2019s Portugal case study: a nationwide energy cooperative named Coop\u00e9rnico that was established in 2013 and supplies solar power to thousands of people, small and medium-sized enterprises and municipalities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EContracts for change\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor Coop\u00e9rnico, one challenge has been getting the cooperative\u2019s voice heard among other, more powerful energy-market players that prefer the status quo.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERegular\u0026nbsp;dialogue among energy players \u2013 including policymakers \u2013 to highlight people\u2019s contributions to the transition would help to overcome this obstacle, according to Klein.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project produced policy recommendations for a people-centred energy transition. One recommendation is for \u201cenergy citizen contracts\u201d.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThese are voluntary commitments to coordinate sustainability practices and goals between energy communities and policymakers. The contracts can, among other things, help identify the resources needed to meet shared targets.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor Klein, the EU\u2019s push for local initiatives to spur energy change in Europe will increasingly encompass everything from small gestures to headline ones. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The role of citizens in the transition can correspond to individual or collective initiatives and social or political ones,\u2019 he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearch in this article was funded by the EU\u2019s Horizon Programme. The views of the interviewees don\u2019t necessarily reflect those of the European Commission. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-jyeia-tufxwms88qfopx5tgcxdxqtawulohn53t2f1o\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-Jyeia_tUfXWMS88QFOpx5TGcxDXqTAwuloHN53t2f1o\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]