Striving for climate neutrality by 2050, while ensuring social justice, is a key element of the European Green Deal – the EU’s leading development strategy to ensure its climate and citizen-friendly growth. One of the aims of the strategy is to ensure the decarbonisation of the European economy while protecting EU citizens, which becomes even more important in the context of rising energy prices. Implementing the European Green Deal therefore means, among other things, combating inequality and energy poverty. To support this, the European Energy Poverty Advisory Hub (EPAH) was launched in 2021. Its main task is to help local authorities and their partners to analyse the problem in their area and plan local actions that will help to reduce energy poverty and, in the long term eliminate it and accelerate a just transition of the different EU regions. The Hub works with subject matter experts and gathers valuable knowledge, experience and good practice that can be useful to other local authorities and stakeholders in tackling energy poverty.
The struggle against energy poverty is a priority for many European local authorities. Despite their ability to deal with many complex social, economic and institutional problems, it remains a challenge, from identifying energy poverty indicators, to proposing and preparing effective actions and implementing them. It is therefore necessary to base local strategies and actions on a thorough bottom-up analysis of vulnerable consumers, their situation and opportunities.
To help with this, the EPAH Hub is launching a call for proposals for a Technical Assistance Programme designed for local authorities and organisations working with them that want to tackle energy poverty. Between 1 February and 1 March 2022, applicants will be able to apply for technical assistance (expert support), lasting up to 9 months, which will enable them to better plan activities for the energy poor or those at risk of energy poverty.
All municipalities and cooperating organisations interested in benefiting from the assistance are cordially invited to participate in a webinar in Polish, during which the topic of energy poverty will be discussed in detail, as well as the support and materials offered by the EPAH, the application process, the scope of the technical assistance provided and details on the subsequent cooperation between the beneficiary and the appointed expert.
The webinar will take place on 4 February at 11:00 am! The agenda includes the following:
- Energy poverty in Europe and Poland – current situation, methodology, analyses of the phenomenon, challenges and possible solutions.
- Energy Poverty Advisory Hub (EPAH) – what does a new European initiative offer to municipalities?
- Technical Assistance Programme against energy poverty – details of the programme, call for proposals and future cooperation.
We invite you to register and attend the webinar to find out, what assistance you can apply for under the EPAH Technical Assistance Programme!
