Materials from the in-person portion of the RE-ENERGIZE UKRAINE 2024 Summer School

On May 30–31, the interactive in-person component of the RE-ENERGIZE UKRAINE Summer School on Building Green Energy Communities took place.

Project coordinator Viktoria Vostryakova welcomed the participants. She noted that the main goal is not only to learn but also to share experiences and knowledge in order to identify local needs and understand how the project can help communities in the future.

The school’s packed agenda will help participants gain a deeper understanding of and immerse themselves in the concept of creating green energy communities, as well as learn how to initiate and develop such projects locally.

The following speakers addressed the participants of the Summer School with welcoming remarks: Rebecca Harms, Member of the European Parliament (2004–2019) for the Green Party, Yevheniia Chobotova, representative of the Economic Section of the German Embassy in Ukraine, and Iryna Kondratenko, coordinator of the “Climate Change and Energy Policy” program at the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s office, who noted that today, more than ever, we are beginning to understand the importance and significance of energy in our lives, as well as the importance of energy sustainability.

The share of renewable energy in Ukraine remains relatively small. If the concept of energy communities can be successfully implemented, it will make it possible to enhance and accelerate the energy transition in Ukraine. This is crucial for improving energy resilience and decentralization. It is important to note that, despite the war, Ukraine has not backed away from its climate commitments. Under these circumstances, the issue of renewable energy has taken on new, urgent significance and has become a guarantee of security.

Viktoria Vostryakova, project coordinator and head of the NGO “SYNERGY Sustainable Development Agency,” presented the handbook “Creating ‘Green’ Energy Communities in Ukraine” to the school participants.

The main goal of the authors was to assist active citizens who wish to create their own energy projects in their communities.

Key objectives:

• Increasing citizen engagement in the energy transition process;
• Ensuring energy security and addressing energy poverty;
• Developing effective business models and action plans for energy communities;
• Providing practical recommendations and document templates.

For more details on the contents of the guide, please follow the link

Andriy Andrusevych, a senior analyst at the Research and Analysis Center “Society and Environment,” provided the Summer School participants with a wealth of practical advice.

We discussed the original purpose of establishing energy communities, as well as their concept and legal forms. We sought to answer the question of why this is strategically important for Ukraine today. We discussed what to build upon in developing energy communities and what message to convey to the public and government authorities in order to gain their support and trust. As the speaker noted, there are many projects in Ukraine today, but they are not cooperatives. We discussed the role of energy cooperatives, which are currently the only form of community recognized by law in Ukraine. However, our legislation is still in the process of transformation, and this must also be taken into account. Energy communities in Ukraine, unfortunately, are a rare phenomenon. Therefore, we have a whole field of activity that has not yet been tested. I analyzed the main challenges and prospects, the capacity of communities, leadership, and financial capabilities. I highlighted two important factors—trust and leadership—without which it is impossible to build a successful energy community. I expressed my conviction that the school’s participants will become exactly the leaders that communities need.

Following lively discussions on current topics, the Summer School participants, together with Olena Soloid, Viktoria Turchak, Olga Malikhatko, Khristina Kasianova, and Benjamin Dannemann, moved on to practical group work on the following questions: 

• a strategic vision for the energy-efficient community of the future,
• mobilizing resources for the development of renewable energy,
• effective communication for building energy communities,
• mapping stakeholders,
• interaction with local governments and other stakeholders for the development of energy communities,
• review of the project’s key components, error analysis,
• finalizing the concept,
• familiarization with tools for attracting funding and tools for developing a fundraising strategy.

You can watch the speakers' presentations here here

The speakers' presentations are available here