Swiss electricity supply scenarios: Perspectives from the young generation

Abstract

While numerous studies have argued that public preferences need to be considered in energy transitions, the public has rarely informed the choice of normative scenarios from energy systems modelling. Using the case of Swiss electricity supply in 2035, we focus on a specific citizen group—school pupils of 10 to 18 years old—and use educational workshops to form and elicit their preferences in a way that helps choose scenarios from modelling. Initially, the 164 involved pupils had a simplistic understanding that future electricity supply mainly needs solar PV and electricity savings, but after our workshops they developed a more complete view that involved other technologies. The mean preferred scenario of the pupils for modelling relied on 88% renewable electricity, complemented by small shares of nuclear power, natural gas-based generation, and almost no net electricity imports. When compared to preferred scenarios for modelling elicited from 79 adult citizens and 60 energy experts in Switzerland, the pupils were less ambitious, since adults and experts preferred scenarios with 99% and 97% renewable sources on average. Most pupils opted for much more renewable electricity and less fossil fuel-based generation and imports than existing 82 model-based scenarios published in 2011–2018, indicating that the pupils’ preferred scenarios should complement existing scenarios.