DEMOCRACY AND JUSTICE IN COLLECTIVE ACTION INITIATIVES IN THE ENERGY FIELD

With the deployment of renewable energy technologies, the energy market is going towards a polycentric system characterized by the cohabitation of large- and small-scale installations. This configuration allows for the presence of new actors, fostering the deployment of renewable energy and representing a new tool to fight against climate change. This thesis investigates the role of one of these new players: energy communities. Energy communities represent a form of collective management based on the principle of “one people, one voice”, where citizens are the direct owners of energy, contrasting thus with the previous energetic model based on fossil-fuel energy and big companies and states. Furthermore, energy communities, intensely caring about social issues and inclusivity within their initiatives, imply political and social shifts. In this, they are related to energy democracy and justice, allowing all citizens to participate directly in the energy transition. This research inquiry analyses the reality of these initiatives, investigating whether possible gaps emerge between the citizen and the energy communities’ characteristics for potential inclusiveness at a time when part of the literature tends to raise attention towards the fact that energy communities could still be far from bringing more energy democracy and justice in this field. Another point to underline is that thanks to adopting a comparative perspective, this research also looks to identify how some traditional determinants of collective action initiatives as size but also socio-territorial context, can impact the capacity of these initiatives to bring more energy democracy and justice.