Energy community innovations and regional policy diversification in Italy: a preliminary analysis

Abstract

Renewable energy communities (RECs) embody a distributed and collaborative model (based on peer-to-peer production and sharing) that may prove key in fostering energy transition. However, RECs are still far from affecting the dominant energy regime. Hence, the present paper aims to investigate key enabling or disabling factors in REC-building processes and to facilitate multi-stakeholder mutual learning and capacity building. Under the chosen research design, single case studies have been complemented with a review of regional policy frameworks to account for the interplay between territorial differentiation and rapidly evolving social practices. Preliminary results point to the influence of local development trajectories on REC-building strategies, in line with the interdependency between context and agency. Further investigation of regional renewable energy policy frameworks is required to dwell on their interactions with bottom-up REC-building processes, to refine energy transition theories with a due consideration of territoriality and spatial differentiation.