BENE: Citizen action for sustainable energy

The project BENE assessed the potential of active citizen engagement in energy issues to contribute to the promotion of more energy-aware lifestyles in Austria. It analysed necessary institutional frameworks as well as individual resources (e.g. financial, social, knowledge, time) and motivations (e.g. environmental values, societal norms, economic benefits) for engagement. Building on this analytical basis, it developed and implemented activation strategies for expanding the scope of existing initiatives and initiated a transfer of good practice models to further communities.

Client

Climate and Energy Fund; Programme „New Energies 2020“ www.klimafonds.gv.at

Duration

2010-2012

Partner
  • Sustainable Europe Research Institute (SERI)
  • Ökoregion Kaindorf
  • AEE Vorarlberg 
Projektbericht

With rising efforts towards a transformation to more sustainable energy systems, the role and the responsibilities of individual end-users and ‘the general public’ are also receiving increasing attention. It is widely recognized that the development of more energy aware lifestyles will have to constitute an important part of a shift to more sustainable energy systems. There is widespread agreement that one central barrier to the development and diffusion of more energy aware lifestyles lies in the invisibility and intangibility of energy production and consumption in everyday activities. However, recent years have also seen the establishment of more direct engagement opportunities, such as participative fora in energy policy making, local or regional energy initiatives or community owned means of energy production. Hopes are now also being placed on such bottom-up initiatives to contribute to a number of positive effects in a transition to more sustainable energy systems.

BENE assessed the potential of active citizen engagement in energy issues to contribute to the promotion of more energy-aware lifestyles in Austria. It analysed necessary institutional frameworks as well as individual resources (e.g. financial, social, knowledge, time) and motivations (e.g. environmental values, societal norms, economic benefits) for engagement. Building on this analytical basis, it developed and implemented activation strategies for expanding the scope of existing initiatives and initiated a transfer of good practice models to further communities.

The project followed a case-study based approach and cooperated closely with two different citizen initiatives in the field of energy, representing promising forms of participation and engagement in the energy sector (Ökoregion Kaindorf, green electricity trading platform and PV cooperatives initiated by AEE Vorarlberg).