Serge Despeyroux

Nominated by: Elodie Denizart, Transition Ecologique des Territoires en Europe

DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVE ROLE TOWARDS ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN EUROPE

Through his professional carreer and personal convictions, Serge has fougt for the energy transition. Involved in many public and associative actors at local, departmental, regional and national levels, he gave a full committment without counting his time. Serge has built policy instruments at departmental and regional levels since the 1990s, and some of them have fed the European policies. He has the European cooperation at heart in his daily work. His involvement in Quercy Energies had a huge impact on energy management and renewable energy sources in households, communities and industries.

CREATIVITY AND STRATEGIC VISION

From 1990s discussions held by the Council of Lot, Ademe (the Environment and Energy Management Agency), forestry experts and some municipalities, which led to the creation of the Quercy Energies association. An energy cell was set up at the end of 1993 to provide advice and technical assistance with regard to energy management and renewable energy sources in households, communities and industries.

Already a One Stop Shop in 1993! The originality of this cell – and its major asset in terms of economics and independence – lies in the multiplicity of its partners, both political (at the departmental, regional, national and European levels) and professional (forestry, building), all involved in a sensible effort to improve management which can help local job creation, maintain the environment and reduce pollution.

As regards energy management, a real trend has established itself over the years on the theme of social housing. For social housing, a prior thermal study was carride out, depending on the estimated heating costs of the dwelling, would determine whether or not subsidies would be granted. This action received in 1996 support from the European Commission in order to add to it a scheme for monitoring residents and training social workers.

Wood Energy sector development and lobby for European framework and support mechanisms: specific tax measures, reducing VAT on wood as a fuel and on sales of heat from renewable energy sources, environmental standards, but also public information. Jointly with Chamber of Agriculture and Lot Council, distribution of renewable energy and energy management info amongst farming public.

IMPACT

• 3 components of the sustainable development: energy / economy / social have always been at the heart of Serge action in Lot. Through Quercy Energies, Serge always cared to integrate social issues to energy transition measures. 5 salary staff in 1993 in Quercy Energies, today around 12 people
• Still in the 1990s, Quercy Energies has controlled the European programme “Energy saving against social exclusion”, the aim of which was to monitor energy use in social housing, train social workers and produce education materials. This project covered the départements of Lot and Hérault and was run in collaboration with Lot département Council, the European Commission (DG V), Ademe (the Environment and Energy Management Agency) · and Géfosat/Ri2e.
• Serge has always been vigilent to be part of wide exchange and replicability networks at regional, national and European levels : CLER, FLAME, FNCAUE (Fédération Nationale des Conseils d’Architecture, d’Urbanisme et de l’Environnement)…

Involved in many public and associative actors at local, departmental, regional and national levels, figures could be found on the number of organisations he was part of and for which he gave a full committment without counting his time.

LEADERSHIP

Serge has always worked at the cross-sectoral level with all the stakeholders in the policies or rural balanced development: agriculture and farming, forestry, river management, social affairs and notably housing actors… He has always led actions for an affordable energy transition, and then motivated, accompanied, trained… actors from public and private sectors in that sense.

Serge has built policy instruments at departmental and regional levels since the 1990s, and some of them have fed the European policies. He has the European cooperation at heart in his daily work.

Both a whistleblower and a committed politician, Serge is specifically vigilent about the impact of energy transition actions on the territories, in environmental and social terms. His message has always been “energy sobriety first”, and a balanced mix of renewables, adapted to each territory, and exploited all what nature gives us, also in a sober way. Wood, sun, rivers… can be vectors to energy sobriety models, especially in rural isolated areas, but the first step is to think before acting, and before consuming our resources.

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