Seven pillars of energy cooperation: an energy justice-driven framework for energy communities and energy cooperatives

Abstract

Energy cooperatives are increasingly recognised as the hallmark example of citizen-led energy initiatives. These energy cooperative initiatives are a crucial piece of the decarbonisation puzzle but represent complex legal structures to enable community collaboration and accelerate decarbonisation. Building on the increasing focus on how to effectively conceptualise and regulate energy cooperatives, this article introduces a new framework underpinned by the seven pillars of energy cooperation related to the development and operation of energy communities pursuant to energy justice. Our study addresses the capacity of cooperatives to resolve, incorporate, and act in accordance with energy justice principles, and highlights the unique character of energy communities and energy cooperatives, discussing the need to provide them with a novel policy approach. To satisfy these needs, the paper offers an original conceptual framework based on a comparative evaluation of the International Cooperative Alliance’s principles juxtaposed with the tenets of energy justice. The examination is enriched by references to practical case studies of cooperative enterprises and movements situated in cooperative theory and the growing corpus of energy law literature examining energy cooperatives and energy communities. As a result, this paper introduces the seven pillars of energy cooperation driven by energy justice: participation, independence, responsibility, solidarity, security, decentralisation, and education. The pillars may serve as relevant principles for regulatory reform to effectively create and manage energy cooperatives and energy communities as multifaceted entities providing a potentially powerful pathway for states and communities to reduce their emissions to net zero by 2050.