"Millions of urban households in the post-socialist states of Eastern and Central Europe (ECE) are unable to afford heating their homes in winter due to energy price increases implementd by their governments over the past 20 years, as well as combination of wider circumstances such as cold climates, higher-than-average rates of inefficient housing, inadequately developed and/or decaying infrastructure, large income differentials and economic/political restructuring issues. The limited body of scholarship and policy tends to conceptualize domestic energy deprivation in ECE through the narrow lens of incomes and energy efficiency.
The purpose of this project is to radically transform the state of the art in the field by undertaking the first comprehensive investigation of the multiple social and spatial dimensions of energy poverty in the grain of the post-socialist city. The project will use an energy vulnerability framework to explore the causes, character and consequences of domestic energy deprivation in ECE. Energy vulnerability can be seen as the propensity of a household to experience a lack of socially- and materially-necessitated energy services in the home. EvalUaTE will investigate the manner in which institutional structures, built tissues and everyday practices shape urban energy vulnerability.
Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the project will achieve its aims by undertaking a comparative study of eight urban districts within Gdańsk (Poland), Prague (Czech Republic), Budapest (Hungary) and Skopje (FYR Macedonia). The knowledge gained from the project can potentially lead to the improvement of existing, or establishment of new, technical and institutional frameworks for the provision of affordable, clean and efficient energy services in transitioning urban areas, ultimately aiding climate change mitigation."