Hannah, Vanessa and Carys from Generation Climate Europe sat down with Sara Tachelet from REScoop to talk about citizen energy. As part of the Interlinked campaign, they discussed the part citizen energy can play in bridging the gap between SDG7: Affordable and Clean Energy and SDG13: Climate Action.

Hannah: 
Could you tell us specifically about what you do and how you operate as a cooperative?

Sara: 
We are the European Federation of Citizen Energy Cooperatives so we represent our members at the EU level. We operate as a cooperative but REScoop itself is not a cooperative association. As a federation we are not active in the energy market ourselves, but our members are. We are a network organisation so we bring together our members so they can exchange knowledge, experience and stories and we represent them at the EU policy level making sure that the voices of citizens are heard at the EU level. 

Our members are what we call “citizen energy cooperatives” or “energy communities” as defined by EU law in the clean energy package. By the end of 2019 the EU adopted legislation on energy communities, acknowledging the role of citizens in the energy transition. We present these types of businesses to be active together in the energy sector. What is important is the type of projects: what they do is more than just offering citizens a financial stake in the project; it’s really about democratic ownership. By joining a REScoop, citizens are a co-owner of the production of facilities and they have a say in how the business operates. That’s a crucial element.

Carys:
Thank you, what would you say citizen energy projects offer to local people?

Sara:
One of the things that is important to mention is that you have both social benefits and climatological benefits. It’s not only about doing something about climate change, and making sure the energy transition moves towards renewables, it’s also about providing benefits to local citizens, to neighbourhoods and communities. If you compare us to traditional energy companies, what usually happens is that the benefits and the profits go abroad. In the case of energy communities – of cooperatives – the value remains local and that is important. They often invest, for example, in energy positive projects or energy efficiency measures so part of the profits that are being made will be paid as a dividend to the members and part of the profit will be used as a social project for benefiting the local community. Research shows that it benefits local jobs, therefore benefiting the local economy and community.

Carys:
What do citizen energy projects offer to the EU?

Sara:
It’s a totally different concept and I think we managed to gain a lot of attention already, due to the Paris Agreement. We offered a different business model. We offer something concrete that can help the EU reach its goals so it is working on different fronts. It is working on the social and climatological fronts.

I think this is crucial and what is important about our work as the EU Federation is that citizen energy doesn’t stop at borders. It’s a good example of how organisations across the EU can work together and become one big family. That’s what we call ourselves: the REScoop family. I think it’s a great example for Europe of how you can bring people together and let people talk at an individual citizen level. I think Europe is looking at us to see how we do this because they don’t always manage to reach the individual citizens with a good and clear message. One of the things we said when Brexit was announced is that for us as REScoop eu, our friends, in this situation, it remains the same. Of course, it has some impact on how we work together on EU projects but we are all part of this family and citizen energy doesn’t stop at borders.

Vanessa:
Thank you. Our next question is related to SDG 7. As an organisation, what is your vision and what do you hope to achieve by 2030?

Sara:
What we want is as many people as possible can join an energy community. As the federation, we represent around 9,500 cooperatives and 1,250,000 citizens. We calculated the potential, and what we want is for every citizen to have the opportunity to become an owner of an energy production facility or become part of the energy transition. Our goal by 2050 is that half of all EU citizens can become part of the energy transition, individually or collectively. By doing so we also contribute to clean energy and the Sustainable Development Goals. When you have so many people involved, you ensure that the investments these businesses make will be sustainable and will benefit the community. It’s a consequence of the fact that you are involving the community and the neighbourhood level.

Vanessa:
That sounds really interesting!

Carys: 
Thank you for your time! It’s very exciting to hear about the momentum of REScoop. It seems to be a positive thing in what has been a difficult year.

Sara: 
Yes, definitely we believe we see positive evolution. Covid-19 has a lot of negative side effects so I think we need to focus on what can make our livelihoods better. Community energy is part of the answer.  

To find out more, please visit: https://www.rescoop.eu 

Featured image courtesy of REScoop.eu

By Carys Richards, Vanessa Winkler and Hannah Harrison