Marula Tsagkari

When one leaves behind the metropolitan glitter of Mykonos and moves east, it soon becomes clear that one is entering another world. The density of islands and islets begins to thin out, the sea becomes rougher, and the Aegean loses some of its postcard certainty. Ikaria is only two hours away, though rough seas often make it inaccessible. Those who make it there are greeted by an unusual sight.

As the world grapples with runaway climate change, growing inequalities, and a resurgent far right, the political establishment feels increasingly outdated. Progressive green-left coalitions must translate generalised discontent and polarisation into grassroots support for a bold climate agenda, providing global political and everyday societal energy solutions. There’s a festering, yet completely normalised, form of dissonance in global (climate) politics.

European societies would not run without energy, which is why the energy transition is such a profound transformation. In the first article of our series on urban politics in the climate emergency, we ask whether local energy democracy can overcome the hurdles facing the green transition. Fossil fuels have kept us hooked to large, impersonal energy systems over which we have little or no control. Could renewables re-politicise and even democratise our relationship with energy?