In recent years, European Union (EU) policy has prioritised a fair transition to climate neutrality and addressing energy poverty. In this respect, relevant policies, legal framework and commitments to support the European low-income and vulnerable citizens have been enacted. However, there are still several gaps in knowledge and practice, especially concerning rural areas, that are left behind in the efforts to achieve a clean and just energy transition.
This online event, organised by the RENOVERTY project, aims to put rural areas in the spotlight, as they are at a significantly higher risk of facing energy poverty and social exclusion. The webinar entitled “Rural Revival: Empowered Communities and Sustainable Energy in a Changing Climate” will take place on Friday 1st of March at 10:00-12:00 CET. During the webinar, three EC-funded projects RENOVERTY, RURALITIES and Rural Bio UP will share their latest results on energy poverty, energy efficiency and sustainable development in rural areas as well as practical examples from their case studies.
In particular, Dimitris Papantonis, from the Technoeconomics of Energy Systems laboratory (TEESlab) and Stefan Bouzarovski from the Institute for European Energy and Climate Policy (IEECP), will provide key insights to bridge gaps in knowledge and practice in rural energy poverty and energy efficiency. This presentation will focus on findings from an in-depth desk-research in the existing scientific and policy literature, as well as a European-wide survey assessing the needs and thoughts of stakeholders focused on rural areas. Moving on, Gabor Mester, from PEDAL Consulting, will focus on how to engage and empower rural actors to create a more comprehensive network of local and regional authorities that support rural innovation. Last but not least, Kristaps Makovskis, from Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, will showcase rural development examples from the Latvia Regional Hub as identified within the Rural Bio Up project.
Register for the webinar here.
The agenda is available here.