Noel Formosa

Nominated by: Diane Cassar, Malta Intelligent Energy Management Agency

DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVE ROLE TOWARDS ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN EUROPE

Mr Noel Formosa has been very active in the promotion of energy efficiency both in his role as the Mayor of the village San Lawrenz in the island of Gozo, as well as through his participation in the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), in the Council of Europe and as Vice President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Group in the CoR.

Mr Formosa is one of the longest serving mayors in Malta – he has in fact been the Mayor of San Lawrenz since 1994, when local councils were first established in the Maltese Islands. During the past twenty-eight years Mr Formosa’s objective was to define a local strategy for his village which focused on different sectors related to energy efficiency, namely, improving the energy efficiency of the buildings, better water management, green transport and sustainable tourism while improving the quality of life of the citizens. He has been contributing towards energy and environmental sustainability through the launching and implementation of various initiatives in the locality of San Lawrenz as well as on a regional level in the island of Gozo.

Mr Formosa has been actively disseminating the work done in relation to energy efficiency and sustainability within his locality through his participation in European events and presentation of tangible results with a high replication potential in other European countries. Even though San Lawrenz is one of the smallest municipalities in the Maltese Islands, Mr Formosa always firmly believed that his village can have a positive environmental impact and can serve as a best practice for energy efficiency initiatives.

CREATIVITY AND STRATEGIC VISION

Mr Formosa has been working for several years on the strategic vision for his locality which was launched in 2009 through the slogan “San Lawrenz, the village that thinks and acts ecologically”. Since then the council, under the guidance of Mr Formosa, launched innovative eco-friendly initiatives every year with the aim of educating the residents so that they can contribute to a cleaner and healthier environment as well as to help them to reduce their energy costs.

The first initiative, launched in 2009, incentivised residents to install solar water heaters, which resulted in an increase of 65% in the residential installation of solar water heaters. Mr Formosa has also been supporting several campaigns related to water management and reducing water waste, which is very important for Malta since more of the drinking water is produced through an energy intensive reverse osmosis process. He was one of the first mayors to install a drinking water fountain in the main square so the community can regularly refill their reusable water bottles and ban single-use plastics at all of the village’s cultural events and activities.

The local council of San Lawrenz was also the first and only Maltese municipality to participate in a community micro-grid pilot project. In 2018 Mr Formosa brought together residents, local businesses and voluntary organisation to launch a pilot renewable energy community with the aim of boosting the locality’s renewable energy potential, reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and empower the community to self-consume clean energy.

IMPACT

1. 28 years of commitment towards a greener society: Noel Formosa was first elected Mayor of San Lawrenz in 1994, at the age of 22. He has since held the position of mayor and maintained his commitment towards achieving a more sustainable municipality by focusing on the active engagement of citizens through the past 28 years. Mr Formosa has been dedicated to the promotion of energy efficiency and environmental sustainability both locally and internationally through his role as mayor as well as his participation in the European Committee of the Regions and in the Council of Europe. His strategy revolved around the need to empower the local community to contribute towards a greener society.
2. 130t avoided CO2 emissions per year: Mr Formosa always aimed to help residents to increase their awareness in relation to energy efficiency, reduce their energy bills and contribute to the reduction in CO2 emissions. As part of his vision for a more sustainable locality, Mr Formosa spearheaded the launch of an incentive for the uptake for solar water heaters by residents of the locality of San Lawrenz in 2009. This measure resulted in reductions in CO2 emissions exceeding 130 tonnes of CO2 per year.
3. 1st green fiscal policy approved in Malta: Mayor Formosa approved the first ever green fiscal policy in Malta in 2019, as part of the local council’s involvement in the LOCAL4GREEN project, funded under the Interreg MED programme. The green fiscal policy aimed to reward residents making use of renewable energy in the municipality through the provision of vouchers for the free use of electric bikes provided by the local council and is expected to impact almost 300 bike rentals on a yearly basis.

LEADERSHIP

Noel Formosa has been leading the community of San Lawrenz during its journey to become a more sustainable municipality for almost three decades. Mr Formosa works together with residents, local businesses and voluntary organisation on a daily basis as part of his mission to educate the community to be more sustainable. He makes sure to get to know each and every person within the community and communicate, listen and understand to orient the work of the local council towards the needs of the residents.

Mr Formosa has the ability to motivate people through his dedication and commitment towards all sectors of society, keeping in mind the most vulnerable, to make sure that the proposed energy-related initiatives are of benefit to the whole community. His hard work and patience have inspired several key stakeholders to capitalise on his vision of achieving more sustainable Mediterranean communities.

Curious to find out if Noel will be the winner of the Roger Léron Award 2022?