| dc.description.abstract | To limit climate change, the Dutch government aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 49% by
2030. To achieve this goal, a transformation in the energy sector is necessary. The production of
renewable energy provides opportunities for a decentralised energy system. In the discourse of the
‘participation society’ in the Netherlands, local communities are increasingly perceived as key players
in the transition to a low-carbon energy system. An emerging phenomenon in the renewable energy
sector are Community Renewable Energy (CRE) initiatives. These can be defined as citizen-led
initiatives that propose collaborative solutions on a local basis to facilitate the development of
sustainable energy technologies and practices. The active role of citizens in the production of public
goods lead to new roles of local and regional governments. The role of the government is not vanishing,
but rather shifting towards a more responsive and facilitating government.
This research aims to answer the following research question: How and to what extent do local and
regional governments support CRE initiatives? The research question is answered by comparing the
two case studies of the municipalities of The Hague and Rotterdam. In addition, the regional level is
included by analysing the role of the Province of South Holland. In total twenty-eight in-depth
interviews were conducted with CRE initiative representatives, intermediary representatives,
municipal officials, provincial officials, and experts. To structure the empirical research the initiatives
were classified on their types and phases.
The results reveal that the municipalities mainly offered advice and legal support in the facilitating role
and subsidies and roofs to install solar panels in stimulating CRE initiatives. Compared to Rotterdam,
The Hague offered more and diverse practices, such as hosting a working group and organising a prize
competition. The province of South Holland mainly offers a subsidy and created a learning network in
which initiatives exchange experiences and knowledge. The offered practices varied by phase, rather
than type of initiative. The supportive role of the municipalities is limited due to the lack of internal
alignment, flexibility (bureaucracy), resources and capacity, participation of initiatives, and lack of
vision by the municipality. The absence of policies on dealing with citizen initiatives limits the
supportive role of the municipalities and province. The results indicate that the governments have
great potential to enhance their supportive role. Ultimately, the initiatives want to gradually grow
towards a partnership with the municipality to work in process of co-creation to achieve results in the
energy transition. | |
