Energy Communities – value and reality
Energy communities represent an immense value – economically, environmentally, and socially. How can we create better frameworks and conditions for energy communities as a part of the green transition? What is the potential of a joint organization of energy communities? At the W4RES Capacity Building Seminar and Mutual Learning Workshop in Denmark, Copenhagen, organized on 21 March 2023, national and international knowledge was shared, and a stakeholder organization was introduced.
The site visit in Avedøre included visits to and presentations from:
– Store Hus by Malene Friis Schultz (chairman of the residents in the local social housing organization and member of the Steering Group Committee of Avedøre Green City) regarding the Danish model of Social Housing
– Hvidovre Gymnasium presented by Tania S. Larsen, the chairwoman of Avedøre Energy Community, regarding the solar panels on the Highschool
– Film City Zentropa with a presentation from Kirsten Christen, Hvidovre Municipality on their implementation of DH, and Anders Kjærhauge, Administrative Director of Zentropa on their implementation of solar panels and participation in the Energy Community
Three main points addressed in the workshop can be summed up below:
– When you embrace diversity in a steering group or in your employees, you also gain access to different life experiences and thereby a stronger set of experiences with more to offer.
– A lot of citizens and businesses are willing to create a change in the energy sector and be part of the green transition.
– The willingness of citizens and businesses meets a political barrier when trying to be part of new solutions in the energy sector.
Heather Wallerson Krog, as a keynote speaker, pointed out the fact that the participants comprised quite an influential group, and gave them the opportunity to ask whose voices weren’t heard in their work. Wallerson Krog also focused on the fact that diversity is a reality. The participants should harness the power from it and be aware of ‘psychological safety’ when inviting new voices into their work.
The Energy Communities – value and reality was arranged in a collaboration between European Green Cities, EBO Consult A/S, Energy Cluster Denmark, and Energifællesskab Avedøre // Energy Community Avedøre, and made possible by W4RES - Women for market uptake of renewable heating and cooling.
