Exploring energy citizenship in the urban heating system with the ‘Walking with Energy’ methodology

Abstract

Background Energy citizenship has emerged as a concept which attempts to capture the new role envisaged for urban citizens as engaged and active in the energy transition. However, exactly how to successfully engage energy citizens requires more research and this article aims to contribute to this knowledge gap. The article presents a new methodology, ‘Walking with Energy’, which seeks to (re)connect citizens with where their energy is coming from. By experimenting with the application of this method in the UK and Sweden, we consider how viewing and talking about heating provision, while in the energy landscape, can encourage participants to reflect upon their local, mundane energy experiences and foster a greater sense of energy citizenship and greater motivation to engage with debates around heating transition. Results The article presents four different events: (1) a physical walk to an energy recovery facility, (2) a walk to view a building’s heat exchanger, (3) a round-table discussion using pictures to communicate in a language café, and (4) a virtual tour around an Energy Recovery Facility. The way we conducted the events influenced who engaged, for example: the walk through a heat facility and the walk to visit a heat exchanger in the basement of a University building tended to attract white middle-class people, while the virtual tour attracted a more mixed audience in terms of age and background, but most had a strong environmental interest. The language café targeted immigrants. The different events resulted in many similar reflections, but there was also variation. For example, the walk through the heat facility generated the most focused and least diverse reflections, while the event focussed on the heat exchanger opened up a wide range of issues for discussion. Conclusions We find that the method encouraged the sharing of personal experiences, storytelling, and deepened the engagement of participants with debates about energy. The method can help promote energy democracy and boost a deliberative dialogue about present and future energy systems among citizens. We also learnt that promotion of energy citizenship requires not only active citizens but also active facilitation to create opportunities for citizens to engage and reflect.

Material energy citizenship through participation in citizen-financed photovoltaic projects

“…This conforms to the notion of energy citizenship as a citizen-energy-system interaction [39,40]. Furthermore, it appears to be consistent with the concept of material participation, defined as an engagement with a public and political problem through an object or a device [22,37,38].…”

“…If energy citizenship is to be more than an abstract academic concept but something actionable, it is essential to understand what citizens perceive as realist, accessible, and impactful forms of participation [40,65]. Otherwise, citizens are more likely to identify as "jilted energy citizens" [37], responsible for enacting solutions to planetary destruction but without actual possibilities to engage with this responsibility meaningfully [65].…”

“…In contrast, others argue that energy citizenship can be material-based and linked to the adoption of objects and devices without directly impacting governance structures, such as using an electric car or a private PV installation [22,37,38]. Others contend that energy citizenship is not about what a citizen "ought to become" but rather about all kinds of relationships and interactions of citizens with energy and the energy systems [39,40].…”

Net-Zero Energy Campuses in India: Blending Education and Governance for Sustainable and Just Transition

“…Among the novel techniques used for climate education, a recent study introduced "Walking with Energy", a new technique to actively engage and (re)connect citizens with where their energy is coming from [54]. The authors experimented with the application of this method in the European region (UK and Sweden).…”

The (in)visible Grid: Households’ Sensemaking of a Changing Power System

“…Given the changes that we are now seeing in Europe, electri cation, and climate impacts as well as other risks related to the power system, there is a need to better understand how households can become more aware of the grid and the limitations of electricity supply. As Palm and Ambrose argue, there is a need to re-engage citizens in matters of energy such as heating systems for their homes [23] This paper investigates how people in detached houses in Sweden make sense of future power de cit conditions caused by growing limitations in the power grid. It also examines how these householders envision their own response to such power de cit situations were these to happen in their everyday life, and by extension, how they understand the power infrastructure overall.…”