The key resource for a climate revolution: citizens
On rooftops in cities, fields in rural communities, or islands with irregular consumption patterns, citizens are increasingly organising themselves in energy communities producing, consuming and sometimes even selling their own energy. A European project covering 9 different countries shows how these citizens, so-called prosumers, can help bring about lasting change in renewable energy in Europe. This project, PROSEU, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020, has wrapped up three years’ of researching ‘prosumerism’. The conclusions are stark: there is a potential for such citizen initiatives to produce up to 89 percent of the electricity demanded in the residential sector! Furthermore, results advocate for expanding the energy produced by citizens across Europe. In addition to studying the possibilities of prosumerism, the project has worked with “Living Labs” in 9 countries, analysed European and national policies, investigated business models and produced a roadmap for the citizen-driven energy Transition. Project Coordinator Inês Campos from Fciências.ID says: “Citizens’ role in the energy transition is not limited to changing their consumption patterns or protesting fossil fuels and our research proves that. There is a very large potential in people and communities taking energy into their own to produce the renewable energy we need for a sustainable transition” she explains. Policy recommendations to guide the way Working with prosumers across Europe, from Croatia to the UK, the PROSEU project put forth concrete recommendations for policy makers at different levels. These recommendations focus on four different areas: the economic viability of prosumerism, timely incorporation into law, the creation of frameworks, and the engagement of citizens in energy governance. Inês Campos, the coordinator of PROSEU, says: “Citizens have the will to become prosumers contributing to our energy transition but they need support and fewer regulatory barriers. In PROSEU we have investigated what’s needed for a truly citizen-led energy transition and now it’s up to governments, energy companies, researchers and citizens to take it further.” The PROSEU partners were FEUP, ClientEarth, DRIFT, University of Zagreb, Leuphana University, Eco-union, CE Delft, IÖV, ICLEI and the University of Leeds, with Fciências.ID leading the work. PROSEU was funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.
Keywords
Prosumerism, citizens, energy, renewables, renewable, solar, wind, energy community, energy communities