Call for papers! Digitalisation of energy communities: New modes of organising, business models and transition governance

Basic project information

Call for papers to the DigiDecarbon project's final workshop in Helsinki! Closes on May 31st, 2024.

The “demand side” of the market, actions by citizens as consumers and producers of to low-carbon energy now plays an increasing role in the decarbonization of energy and built environment that are the largest carbon polluters in the EU. The synergies between energy and digital technologies open new opportunities for novel forms of citizen and community action. Energy communities have a key role in enhancing acceptability, participation, and justice in the net-zero transitions. Despite promising policy steps and isolated positive examples, there remain challenges and paradoxes in governance, business model development and societal organising of new types of energy communities that call for empirical and conceptual attention.

Digitally mediated decarbon communities project is organising a final workshop to focus on the key aspects in community energy development. We call for contributions including but not limited to the four central areas in better understanding, conceptualising and supporting energy communities in digitalized world:

  • Digital, physical and hybrid modes of organising energy communities: energy community forms are diversifying, with different implications for energy transitions, democratic engagements and social justice.
  • Energy community business model development: How collaborative value creation takes place at an ecosystem level? Opportunities and limits in combining operating logics (e.g., for profit, non-profit). Justice implications of business models.
  • Transition governance related to energy communities: What is the current state of the current policy mixes for community energy? Coherence of digitalisation and community energy policies
  • Analyses of broader green and digital transitions with an import to energy communities and citizen engagement in energy transitions

Workshop keynotes include Adrian Smith, Sampsa Hyysalo, Derk Loorbach and Eva Heiskanen. Two-day workshop will be organised in Aalto University campus in Helsinki on October 2nd to 3rd, 2024. To express your interest in participating, send a 250–500 word abstract to digidecarbon(at)aalto.fi by 31st May. The decisions of acceptance will be made and informed by the end of June.

In your abstract indicate whether you join the workshop in person or only through online participation – we will retain one of the session tracks for hybrid participation.

The registration fee for the workshop is 150€. The fee covers dinner, lunches and coffees and public transit within the Helsinki region.

Based on the contributions, a special issue proposal to one of the topical journals (e.g. Energy Policy, Energy Research and Social Science, Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions) will be considered.

For more information, contact digidecarbon(at)aalto.fi or jani.lukkarinen(at)syke.fi.

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DigiDecarbon project description:

The “demand side” of the market, actions by citizens as consumers and producers of to low carbon energy now plays an increasing role in the decarbonization of energy and built environment that are the largest carbon polluters in EU. The synergies between energy and digital technologies open new opportunities for novel forms of citizen and community action.

We investigate the new digitally mediated energy communities in Finland:

  • Aalto University studies the forms and dynamics of digitally enabled citizen energy communities;
  • University of Vaasa focuses on the presently emerging collaborative business ecosystems related to them;
  • Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) examines the recent policy reforms and policy coherence related to energy communities as well as the role of public sector.

The consortium also studies the potential of wide digitalized participation arenas for elaborating the future pathways of energy communities. DigiDecarbon is part of a networked competence cluster that is comprised of academic, policy, industry and practitioner actors who focus on the demand side of the energy transition. Consortium is lead by Aalto University, Department of Design, Prof Sampsa Hyysalo.

Publications (updated April 2024):

  • Auvinen,K., Meriläinen, T., Saikku, L., Hyysalo, S., & Juntunen, J.K. (2023) Accelerating transition toward district heating-system decarbonization by policy co-design with key investors: opportunities and challenges, Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy, 19:1, DOI: 10.1080/15487733.2023.2256622
  • Apajalahti, E.-L., Ruggiero, S., Lukkarinen, J.P., Laakso, S. (2023). Exploring Tensions in Urban Energy Communities. In Energy Communities and Smart Cities in Sokołowski, M. M., & Visvizi, A. (Eds.) Routledge handbook of energy communities and smart cities. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003280118 
  • Boon, W., Magnusson, T., Hyysalo, S., (2022). Introduction to ‘Markets in sustainability transitions’. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions 45, 30–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2022.08.006
  • Hyysalo, S., & Juntunen, J. K. (2024). Series of configurational movements: User activities in technology generalization. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 200, 123158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2023.123158
  • Hyysalo, S., Heiskanen, E., Lukkarinen, J.P., Matschoss, K., Jalas, M., Kivimaa, P., Juntunen, J.K., Moilanen, F., Murto, P., Primmer, E., (2022). Market intermediation and its embeddedness – Lessons from the Finnish energy transition. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 42, 184–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2021.12.004
  • Kivimaa, P., Lukkarinen, J.P., Lazarevic, D., (2023). Analysis of Covid-19 Recovery and Resilience Policy in Finland: A Transformative Policy Mix Approach. Science and Public Policy 50 (4) pp. 681–694. https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scad016 
  • Laakso, S., Eranti, V., Lukkarinen, J. (2023). Practices and acts of energy citizenship. Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning. https://doi.org/10.1080/1523908X.2023.2251915 
  • Lukkarinen, J.P., Salo, M., Faehnle, M., Saarikoski, H. Hyysalo, S., Auvinen, K., Kangas, H.-L., Lähteenoja, S., Marttila, T., Peltonen, L., (2023). Citizen Energy Lost in Sustainability Transitions: Knowledge co-production in a complex governance context. Energy Research and Social Science. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2022.102932
  • Lähteenoja, S., Hyysalo, S., Lukkarinen, J.P., Marttila, T., Saarikoski, H., Faehnle, M., Peltonen, L., (2022). What does it take to study learning in transitions? A case of citizen energy in Finland. Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy. https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2109316
  • Lähteenoja, S., Marttila, T., Gaziulusoy, I  & Hyysalo, S.  (2023) Transition co-design dynamics in high level policy processes. Design Studies Vol 88 No. C 1-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2023.101207 
  • Marttila, T., Lukkarinen, J., Hyysalo, S., Lazarevic, D., Valve, H., (2024). Mid-range transition arenas catalysing changes towards a circular economy. In “Routledge Handbook of Catalysts for a Sustainable Circular Economy”, Routledge. Jokinen, P. & Jokinen, A. (eds.), pp. 339-358.
  • Ruokamo, E., Laukkanen, M., Karhinen, S., Kopsakangas-Savolainen, M. & Svento, R. (2023). Innovators, followers and laggards in home solar PV: Factors driving diffusion in Finland. Energy Research & Social Science, 102, 103183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2023.103183 
  • Shakeel, S. R., Yousaf, H., Irfan, M., & Rajala, A. (2023). Solar PV adoption at household level: Insights based on a systematic literature review. Energy Strategy Reviews, 50, 101178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esr.2023.101178
  • Shakeel, S. R., Juntunen, J. K., & Rajala, A. (2024). Business models for enhanced solar photovoltaic (PV) adoption: Transforming customer interaction and engagement practices. Solar Energy, 268,112324. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2024.112324
  • Silvast, A., Williams, R., Hyysalo, S., Rommetveit. K. and Raab, C. (2022) Producing the ‘user’ in smart technologies: A framework for examining user representations in smart grids and smart metering infrastructure. Routledge Handbook of Smart technologies – An Economic and Social Perspective” (eds) Heinz D. Kurz, Marlies Schütz, Rita Strohmaier, Stella S. Zilian. Routledge: New York
  • Tolonen, E., Shakeel, S. R., & Juntunen, J. K. (2023). Promoting Just Transition or Enhancing Inequalities? Reflection on Different Energy Community Business Models in Terms of Energy Justice. In M. Shafie-khah & A. S. Gazafroudi (Eds.), Trading in Local Energy Markets and Energy Communities (Vol. 93, pp. 151–180). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21402-8_6
  • Tuomela, S., Hänninen, T., Ruokamo, E., Iivari, N., Kopsakangas-Savolainen, M., Svento, R. (2023). Energy Community Preferences of Solar Prosumers and Electricity Consumers in the Digital Energy Ecosystem. In: Shafie-khah, M., Gazafroudi, A.S. (eds) Trading in Local Energy Markets and Energy Communities. Lecture Notes in Energy, vol 93. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21402-8_4
  • Tuomela, S., Iivari, N., Hänninen, T. and Svento, R. (2023). Gender inclusiveness in adoption and use of home energy technologies. ECIS23 research papers. https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2023_rp/249/
  • Valve, H., Lazarevic, D., Hyysalo, S., Lukkarinen, J., Marttila, T. 2023. The interrupting capacities of knowledge co-production experiments: A sociology of testing approach. Environmental Science & Policy 147: 255–264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2023.06.019 
  • Faehnle, M., Lukkarinen, J., Santala, I. (2022). Energiakriisi ja kollektiivinen toimijuus kunnissa. Alue ja ympäristö 51:2, https://doi.org/10.30663/ay.122925.
  • Numminen, S., Silvikko, M. & Hyysalo, S (2023) Päälämmityslähteestä monilämmitykseen: suomalaisista pientaloista on tullut toisiaan täydentävien ja vuorottelevien energiajärjestelmien hybrideitä. Alue ja Ympäristö 52 (1) 62-76. https://doi.org/10.30663/ay.125979
Published 2022-02-02 at 9:45, updated 2024-05-10 at 12:33

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