Energy citizenship, Justice, Consumerism, Energy transition, Energy democracy
This chapter explores the phenomenon of the ‘energy citizenship’ and the role it is expected to play in the current global energy transition. If there is to be an essentially just transition, those tasked with leading it must account for the intersectional experiences of all citizens when planning and building the new energy infrastructures of the low-carbon future. This has not been the case to date, which is strange given the energy system is fundamentally a social system. While citizen participation in the energy domain offers very real transformative potential for both the energy system and the wider socio-political arena, the tendency up until now has been to characterize participation along very qualified terms. These have tended to focus on the roles and expectations of individuals, with that floating signifier the ‘energy citizenship’ gaining currency in a number of policy-making arenas. The chapter critiques and examines the many contradictions around citizen participation and posits the question, is this a real mark of change or just another illusory late Capitalocene chimera?