EmbeddingEDIinCitizenParticipation:DesigningInclusiveEngagementframeworkinEnergyCommunitiesforwomenandlow-incomehouseholdsfocusingonEnergyLiteracy.

Energy communities (ECs) are citizen-led legal entities advancing renewable energy and energy efficiency. Central to the UK’s net zero transition, they promote local ownership, resilience, and collective learning, with the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive  recognising citizens as key actors.

Citizen Participation has evolved from a strategy to engage inactive citizens in government activity to encompass autonomous citizen initiatives within broader society, such as community development, social planning, and social action. In energy systems, active participation aligns with social practice theory, which views energy use as embedded in daily life, requiring citizens to be co-creators of solutions rather than passive recipients. However, engagement within ECs often demonstrates higher awareness and participation among men and higher-income groups, leading to the exclusion of women, racialised groups, and lower-incomes unless inclusive measures are taken. Without such measures, energy systems risk excluding marginalised groups, particularly those in energy poverty, from meaningful participation.

This project addresses this gap by embedding EDI principles in the design and recruitment of engagement initiatives, enhancing energy literacy among low-income households and women within ECs. This research proposes to develop and test a participatory framework where EDI informs who participates, how participation is structured, and what knowledge is valued, rather than assessing inclusivity after the fact.

Key objectives:

• Understand the barriers to participation among women and low-income households and develop a recruitment protocol embedding EDI criteria.
• Test an inclusive protocol that supports shared energy literacy (linking everyday practices, local infrastructures, and net zero decisions) and compare with previous workshops where EDI was not considered. This will assess how improved literacy among underrepresented groups amplifies marginalised voices for a more just energy transition.
• Develop a replicable model for inclusive energy citizenship that other ECs can adapt.

The project will focus on Ecovillage Findhorn in Scotland, where previous  project work included energy literacy workshops.

Research questions:

1. What barriers constrain the participation of underrepresented groups, particularly women and low-income households, in energy initiatives, and how can inclusive design approaches help to mitigate these challenges?
2. How can recruitment and facilitation practices in community energy engagement embed Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) considerations from the outset?
3. How does enhanced energy literacy among underrepresented groups (e.g., women and low-income households) translate into greater influence and contribution to a more just energy transition?