Local energy initiatives

Citizen engagement is increasingly recognized as critical for ensuring local communities play a direct role in decision-making processes associated with the energy transition. However, we know comparatively little about how policies at the national and supranational level impact local energy projects, in which citizens are more likely to become involved. Now, Johanna Liljenfeldt and colleagues from Uppsala University and Nordregio in Sweden explore ways in which energy policies at both the Member State and European Union levels facilitate or hinder local energy initiatives.

Focusing on three local energy projects in Sweden, as well as one from Denmark, the research team employ an exploratory, case study approach. Semi-structured interviews and interactive workshops with a range of project participants and owners, political actors, advisors and partners are conducted to consider both perceptions of local energy initiative ownership, as well as of EU policies and their impact on local project development. The team find that shifts in EU policies that support increased energy citizenship have created a positive environment for local initiative growth. However, broader energy policies, taxes and regulations tend to overlook the importance of spatial context and may therefore present unintended roadblocks to regionally critical energy projects. Outcomes from this work highlight the importance of further embedding local-level initiatives into the full energy policy development process.