COLLECTIVE ACTION IN THE ENERGY SECTOR IN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE UNITED STATES: A COMPARISON BETWEEN THE EU AND THE US AND THE POTENTIAL FOR SCALING UP TO IMPACT THE ENERGY TRANSITION

With energy-related carbon emissions at historic highs, and trends expected to rise, organizing a new energy future is crucial now more than ever. In the face of increasing threats of climate disruption and energy security, one positive outlook is the drive for innovative grassroots solutions towards a renewable-based energy transition. Collective Action Initiatives (CAIs) have been contributing to this approach, aiming to create more economically and socially inclusive communities, acting as an example for a sustainable future. CAIs are contributing to the evolution of a decentralized energy market with a large number of ‘prosumers’ (producing consumers) and moving away from a historically centralized energy market dominated by large utilities. The energy transition to renewables will be accelerated when citizens are engaged, helping to build trust and stronger cooperation among communities, as well as support more inclusive regulatory systems. While energy CAIs have potential to offer a number of advantages that address social and environmental problems, their development faces several barriers. In fact, they still represent a small share of the energy market in the European Union (EU) and the United States (US), emerging under different forms and influenced by distinctive factors. This doctorate research is a quantitative and qualitative comparative analysis, complemented by an in-depth data mining and analysis to explore the socioeconomic phenomena of these initiatives. This includes investigating how they are already influencing the EU and US energy systems, and their future roadmaps to potentially impact the energy transition to renewable sources.