Can Citizens Make a Difference in Energy Policies?

On June 10th to 12th, CLIMAS participated in EUSEW 2025 and held an online policy session that brought together key voices in sustainability and climate action. The CLIMAS session, titled “Can citizens make a difference in energy policies? How to design impactful Climate Assemblies” highlighted the active role that citizens can have in shaping local energy policies through Climate Assemblies.

The CLIMAS policy session was held on Thursday, 12 June 2025, from 16:00 – 17:30, online.  

CLIMAS Experts and Guest Speakers

Representing CLIMAS in EUSEW 2025 were:

Constantin Schäfer (Moderator) EU Deliberation, Open Government and \Democracy Consultant | IFOK GmbH

  • Floridea Di Ciommo Economist and Urban Analyst – Director of cambiaMO | changing MObility
  • Pablo Garcìa Arco Direcció General Govern Obert (SDGPC) | Generalitat de Catalunya

Our partners were also joined by leading experts in citizen engagement:

  • Elisa Lironi – Deputy Executive Director | European Citizen Action Service
  • Mark Hessellund – Senior Project Manager | Democracy x Foundation and KNOCA
  • Tessa Dunlop – Policy Analyst | JRC – Joint Research Centre

The guest expert shared their insights on designing Climate Assemblies that effectively influence policy. Moreover, the discussions not only highlighted the role of active citizenship in influencing local climate-related policy, but also provided an overview of the work done in CLIMAS. Specifically, the partners introduced the CLIMAS Toolbox.

Check the CLIMAS Policy session at EUSEW 2025

The session was able to reach a considerable audience, also thanks to the online format. In the past, EUSEW online discussions have historically gathered up to 500 participants. Therefore, for CLIMAS, this represented an excellent opportunity to engage in meaningful policy discussions that drive sustainable energy solutions.

If you have missed the CLIMAS Policy session at EUSEW 2025, don’t worry! Recordings of the session are available, check the full session recording here!

Authors: Izabela Diana Ihnatiuc, Alessandro Tedeschi Gallo –  Deep Blue

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