PLANtoACT / Social innovators

PLANtoACT tackles a key challenge faced by Local and Regional Authorities (LRAs) across Europe: turning ambitious clean energy transition plans into practical, on-the-ground action. The project works with five different pilot regions in France, Italy, Romania, Germany and Portugal to create an innovative, integrated energy planning framework that aligns strategies across various levels of governance and different sectors.

PLANtoACT supports social innovation in clean energy transition (CET) strategies for European municipalities and regions by involving citizens and civil-society networks in the planning process. The project consortium is currently working with six social innovation experts as civil-society lead-users and multipliers.

Their project involvement follows three lines: (a) project introduction and familiarisation with the PLANtoACT planning framework; (b) feedback on the methodologies and their capacity to trigger social innovation; and (c) transfer of the planning framework and knowledge hub to citizens and other end-users through suitable knowledge products, including handbooks and videos.

Who are the social innovators?

ènostra is Italy’s first energy cooperative to produce and supply 100% renewable, ethical and sustainable energy through a participatory model. It has approximately 18,000 members who share a commitment to reducing their environmental footprint through conscious choices, lowering energy consumption, using shared renewable energy and contributing to the energy transition.

Visit the website: https://www.enostra.it/

Innovales is a territorial economic cooperation network that has been working in the fields of sustainable development and the social and solidarity economy across the French Genevois and Haute-Savoie regions since 2015. Its mission is to foster economic projects with a strong social and environmental impact, placing collaboration between businesses, institutions, associations and citizens at the heart of its activities.

Visit the website: https://www.innovales.fr/

ECCO is an independent, non-profit Italian climate think tank established in 2021. It aims to accelerate climate action in Italy, Europe and beyond by producing research, analysis and policy recommendations to support the transition towards a climate-neutral, resilient and equitable world, in line with the Paris Agreement.

Visit the website: https://eccoclimate.org/

Amici della Terra is an environmental association recognised by the Italian Ministry of the Environment, active in Italy since 1978, with offices and local branches across the country. The organisation promotes policies and practices aimed at protecting the environment and fostering sustainable development through public awareness campaigns, projects, environmental information and education initiatives, and local activities.

Visit the website: https://amicidellaterra.it/

Centrales Villageoises are locally governed, citizen-led organisations that develop projects supporting the energy transition through a place-based approach. They bring together citizens, local authorities and businesses, contributing to energy objectives while taking into account broader territorial challenges, such as local economic development, landscape integration and social cohesion. Centrales Villageoises operate as a network within an association and share a common model based on pooling a wide range of tools and services.

Visit the website: https://www.centralesvillageoises.fr/

Kyoto Club is a non-profit organisation founded in 1999. Its members are business companies, associations and local municipalities and governments engaged in reaching the greenhouse gas reduction targets set by the Kyoto Protocol, by the EU ones for 2030 and by the December 2015 Paris Agreement.

Visit the website: https://www.kyotoclub.org/en/