Integrated Sustainable Energy Planning (ISEP) implies the integration of the energy theme in spatial planning, physical and socioeconomic landscapes. The area-based conditions for the accommodation of energy initiatives, which can be supported by the local society and connected to the local economy, are identified within the framework of a sustainable energy plan. Nevertheless, it is not merely a matter of spatial design, but also of institutional design as it involves several actors with diverse and sometime conflicting objectives that must come to a consensus. Therefore, the conduction of an effective energy related planning presupposes deep changes in the structure and organization of the society.
Inspired by these findings, INTENSSS-PA aimed to develop and implement a human and institutional capacity building process related to ISEP in order to support public authorities and societal stakeholders to enter a new era of ISEP through a multi-level, interdisciplinary decision making process.
To achieve this aim INTENSSS-PA developed and implemented a holistic approach that involved the: (i) organization and structuring of existing knowledge related to the integration of energy theme into spatial planning, physical and socio-economic landscapes, so as to provide public authorities and stakeholders with meaningful and systematically organized knowledge, (ii) development of a capacity building environment that goes beyond training by involving experiential learning based on active inclusion of alternative expertise and (iii) organization of an interdisciplinary team to support public authorities and stakeholders involved in or affected by sustainable energy planning to work together within this environment in order to: (a) raise awareness and transfer knowledge on major issues related to ISEP, (b) identify together in an open, sustainable and realistic basis an ISEP concept appropriate for their contextual factors and (c) apply this concept in order to develop an integrated sustainable energy plan for their region.
To implement the INTENSSS-PA capacity-building process the Living Labs (LL) concept was applied. In particular a Regional LL (RLL) was organized in each regional area involved in the project, where different public authorities and stakeholders related to the integration of energy theme into the spatial planning, physical and socioeconomic landscapes were invited to collaboratively innovate, i.e. design, experiment and evaluate an innovative energy and energy related planning concept. To ensure a meaningful representation of EU and real transferable results, INTENSSS-PA established a network of 7 RLLs focused on ISEP within 7 different MS, i.e. Regional area of Karditsa-Greece, Calabria Region-Italy, Region of Castilla y Leon-Spain, Pomurje Statistical Region-Slovenia, Municipality of Groningen-Netherlands, Municipality of Middelfart-Denmark and Zemgale Statistical Region-Latvia.
