Narratives for the Local and Regional level: lessons learned from the EEW5 project and the Covenant of Mayors

The energy transition is shaped as much by how it is told as by the policies behind it. Drawing on input from over 1,300 experts and a wide range of stakeholder workshops across the EU, the fifth European Energy Week (EEW5) explored which narratives tend to open people up to change — and which quietly close them down.

One thread ran consistently through EEW5’s stakeholder process: the who of communication matters as much as the what. Local and regional transition leaders – such as Energy Agencies, energy communities and public authorities – find themselves in a rare position. They are the people who reach local climate and energy targets, oversee Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans, manage public buildings and infrastructure, and talk with residents about renovation, heating, and neighbourhood-scale energy. They carry, in other words, the kind of proximity that no national campaign can easily replicate. 

This session brings those two experiences into dialogue. It shares the key conclusions and policy lessons from Energy Efficiency Watch 5 (EEW5) with the Covenant of Mayors community, grounding them in concrete engagement actions already closed or underway:

• Homegrown Energy
• CitiesHeat Detox
• Cities Refresh

It also brings in the first-hand perspective of local energy transition leaders on what it actually feels like to have those conversations with citizens.

Agenda: 

The event will be moderated by Mickaël Bianchin, Senior Policy Officer FEDARENE.