Local Energy Projects on Islands: Assessing the Creation and Upscaling of Social Niches

Abstract

Islands have great potential for renewable energy, and several pilot and experimental projects have been set up on islands globally, aiming to promote clean energy and self-sufficiency. Many of these decentralized energy initiatives oppose the established regimes of centralized electricity generation and introduce new forms of organization and management. Thus, they can be considered social niches. The aim of the present study is to explore the transition potential of renewable energy projects on three islands located in southern Europe. The analysis mobilizes literature on the strategic niche management theory (SNM) with a focus on the role of the various actors and the different management models. Through a systematic analysis of policy documents and the literature, enriched by interviews, the paper identifies different types of renewable energy projects and discusses the potential for scale up. The paper concludes that these projects are currently in the inter-local phase, and decentralization is not only an important innovation for energy production, but also a new form of energy management often dominated by different actors than the established electricity system.

Islands as Playing and Breeding Grounds for Incumbents, Entrepreneurial Technologists, Policymakers, and Engaged Citizens: The Case of Energy Transition on Ameland

“…In our research, we were able to only touch the surface of this, e.g., by exploring the different roles people may take. Still, our empirical findings are generally in line with other studies that indicate that island communities can be important arenas for issues relating to community engagement such as, for example, [35]. In this respect, as the daily practice of the Ameland Initiative itself shows, there are many research gaps yet to be filled, for example, in relation to the engagement of all citizens of Ameland in the transition process, the differentiation of different groups, and the roles that citizens may have [36].…”

“…We will do this by analysing a regional energy transition process in one particular 'region': the island of Ameland in the Dutch Wadden Sea, which offers us an excellent case to study the importance of place-related, local circumstances and the role of external influences. Islands are generally seen as interesting places for energy innovations because of their unique (bio)-physical, socio-cultural, and economic characteristics [34][35][36][37][38]. Kallis et al (2021), for example, state that islands often serve as testbeds for new technologies, and even potentially are earmarked as forerunners in the transition to clean energy [36].…”

Greek Islands’ Energy Transition: From Lighthouse Projects to the Emergence of Energy Communities

“…Out of the seven case studies, three have already formed an Energy Community, namely Sifnos, Crete, and Chalki. Following similar articles based on empirical findings from case studies [36,37], we used the criteria listed below for the selection of our case studies:…”

Sustainability of local renewable energy projects: A comprehensive framework and an empirical analysis on two islands

“…These islands are pioneers in the renewable energy transition with aspirations that could be considered as of going beyond simply renewable energy and touch upon social, economic, and environmental issues. Additionally, they are the two flagship projects of renewable energy innovation on Southern European islands that are currently in the implementation stage (Tsagkari, 2020). Although the boundaries of the island allow us to define the community and facilitate the research design a word of caution from Connell (2018, p. 2) is appropriate as “islands are far from synonymous with community; they involve diverse and contested interests and contain hierarchies, conflicts, tensions and resistance to ‘outsiders,’ both people and projects.”…”