Energy poverty remains a critical issue across Europe, with many existing solutions offering only short-term financial relief rather than long-lasting change and security against a highly volatile energy market. The SOCIALNRG project addresses this challenge by piloting adaptable, community-driven models in social housing communities in Slovenia, Italy, and Belgium. Through a co-creation approach, vulnerable households actively imagine, shape and manage their own energy future, ultimately establishing their own energy community. By focusing on peer exchange, governance integration, and trust-building, SOCIALNRG aims to create lasting energy communities for 460 families, delivering solutions that not only lower energy costs, but also empower residents, foster community resilience and strengthen social ties.
By directly involving vulnerable households, SOCIALNRG adapts the community energy model to the complexities and particular realities of working with households living in social, cooperative, or public housing. The project accounts for challenges such as integration in local governance structures, irregular work and family schedules, and initial scepticism toward new initiatives that have the potential to disrupt well established day-to-day norms with regard to managing their household. By ensuring that vulnerable households play an active role, SOCIALNRG aims to demonstrate that climate action and social equity can go hand in hand, offering a scalable model for a just energy transition. At a time when social and environmental policies risk being sidelined for competitiveness, SOCIALNRG stands as a blueprint for an inclusive and democratic energy future.