In this ground-breaking book, Jörg Radtke offers for the first time within research, a comprehensive insight into the range of organizational structures of community energy projects in Germany and their contribution to the Energiewende. Based on nationwide quantitative survey data and in-depth analyses of selected case studies of solar, wind and geothermal projects, Radtke documents the social structure and motivations of participating citizens. He examines new forms of material participation, community building and co-determination within the mostly volunteer-led community energy projects based on the civic engagement patterns of active “green citizens”. The author identifies a new form of individualistic participation and collective modes of action in line with new types of project-oriented participation between business, politics and civil society within sustainability transformation processes of the early 21st century.
Table of Content
Systematic overview of participation research.- Participation in the context of renewable energy.- Citizen energy and community energy research.- Empirical analysis of citizen energy initiatives.- Typology of participation in citizen energy initiatives.
About the author
Dr. Jörg Radtke is a senior researcher at the Research Institute for Sustainability – Helmholtz Centre Potsdam.