We want to develop a community and neighborhood-based approach to promote energy efficiency, to develop new products, services and processes and to disseminate effective adoption strategies.

New products, services and processes are necessary because those currently available aren't tailored to the needs and wishes of individual home-owners. Individual home-owners miss the scale to realize effective measures. Also they do not have access to the necessary instruments to invest in energy efficiency.

The sustainability goals of the Paris agreement effects individual citizens and especially home-owners. Not only the environmental footprint, but also the rising costs of energy effect the possibilities and future of citizens. Current solutions such as insulation, alternative energy sources etc. are expensive on an individual scale.

Community and neighborhood-based approach

The local community and neighborhood can be an effective scale and focus for the promotion of energy efficiency. On this scale citizens want and can take responsibility, here they strive towards affordable costs of housing and aim for increased quality of living. On the same scale there are real possibilities to realize energy efficiency, sustainable energy sources and recycling (of energy and other resources). These possibilities provide an excellent laboratory for the development of new products, services and processes. Here local governments can play a logical and essential role in promoting these goals and also to develop new solutions themselves.

New instruments to invest in sustainability

Even when the business case for investment in energy efficiency and sustainable sources of energy, is positive on the long term, many individual home-owners do not have loan facilities to do these investments. We to develop collective energy arrangements, with public guarantees, which overcome these difficulties. Sharing solutions and best practices will also be profitable to the development of solutions inside the different regulatory frameworks. 

New products, processes and services

The overall impact of current investment of home-owners in sustainable energy and energy efficiency is limited. The impact and thus the will of home-owners to participate, can be raised significantly when blocks, streets, flats and whole neighborhoods adopt new solutions. This scale asks for new products, services and processes, which can be developed by local SMEs in cooperation with the community and local government.

New adoption strategies

Realizing the scale necessary for impact, not only demands new products, processes and services, it also asks for new adoption strategies. How do we stimulate blocks, streets, flats and whole neighborhoods to adopt new solutions? A key success factor here is the connection of sustainability goals with affordability and improvement of the quality of living.

A community and neighborhood-based approach to promote energy efficiency

New public and private instruments to invest in sustainability

New products, processes and services focused on the financial and spatial possibilities (collectives) of individual home-owners

New adoption strategies to energize blocks, streets, flats and whole neighborhoods to adopt new solutions

A transnational learning network for local governments, education centers, SMEs and other stakeholders

In the North Sea Region many local governments work with regional partners to preserve and protect the environment. Promoting resource efficiency is their most important instrument. Home-owners are their most important focus group.

On a local scale, home-owners account for a relevant share of the energy consumption. They have the possibility to adopt of new products, services and processes which will help them to reduce their environmental footprint.

Unfortunately, many home-owners are unfamiliar with these products, services and processes. Also, the regionally available products, services and processes are often not tailored to the needs and wishes of individual home-owners. Individual home-owners in many cases miss the necessary scale to realize effective measures. Also, many home-owners at this moment do not have access to the necessary financial instruments to invest in resource efficiency.