Energy democracy

The exact definition of energy democracy is contested and the term is used to refer to a diverse set of proposals, practices, and ideas. Social ownership Advocates of energy democracy support a transition toward social ownership of energy companies and infrastructure, arguing that existing privately owned utilities are poorly suited to undertake rapid decarbonization and address concerns of environmental justice. The call for social ownership encompasses both expansions of public ownership (i.e. municipalization and nationalization) and the promotion of forms of collective ownership (e.g. energy cooperatives, energy community). Various mechanisms for public participation have been suggested, including the creation of democratically elected energy oversight boards and the incorporation of public deliberation into the policymaking process. The need for a democratic transition in energy ownership arises from this discrepancy, as end users—"energy citizens"—of energy transitions are often underrepresented. Decentralization Solar panels, wind turbines, and other renewable energy technologies allow for energy generation to be physically decentralized; advocates of energy democracy believe this energy decentralization could be a tool for empowering local communities and deconcentrating wealth and power. Additionally, advocates argue that decentralization can change community-wide relationships with energy consumption by turning community members into prosumers with a direct stake in questions of production. == Campaigns and Initiatives ==

In the early 2000s, the city of Hamburg Germany privatized its electricity, gas, and district heating distribution grid to multinational energy companies Vattenfall and E.ON. In response, a broad coalition of environmental, civil society and religious organizations formed the initiative Unser Hamburg - Unser Netz (Our Hamburg - Our Grid). The Energy Democracy Project was formed in 2020, bringing together over 30 diverse frontline organizations within the United States to build both community-level ownership of clean energy resources whilst promoting racial and economic equity of the energy transition. In 2021, the New York Energy Democracy Alliance joined other state advocacy organizations in forming the Public Power NY Coalition. The coalition is currently advocating for the passage of the New York Utility Democracy Act (S.B. S7243), which would municipalize the New York's private utility companies and create democratically elected utility boards to oversee their operations. == Critiques ==

Central critiques to the concept of energy justice center around equitable citizen participation and involvement when other more broad structural barriers to participation are left unaddressed. While many conceptualizations of energy democracy incorporate themes of social inclusion, this inclusion is often left undefined and becomes problematized in conceptualizations of energy democracy. Additionally, energy democracy literature has been criticized for its failure to address consideration of energy poverty and distributional injustices. ==See also==