OCTOPUS: For Improved Coordination Among Local Energy Transition Stakeholders

The Octopus project aims to support the large-scale implementation of actions from Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs) by creating a regional network of local facilitators for ecological and energy transition.

Regional Energy Agencies: Facilitators of the Energy Transition

While many local authorities are committed to advancing a sustainable energy transition, they often face challenges in achieving their climate and energy objectives due to a lack of technical expertise and sufficient financial resources.

For effective implementation of energy transition measures, better coordination and a clear distribution of skills and responsibilities across different governance levels are necessary.

In this context, the European Union’s latest directive on energy efficiency assigns a central role to regional energy agencies as facilitators of the energy transition for local authorities.

A Network of Departmental Stakeholders to Accelerate Regional Energy Transition

The project aims to create and strengthen six organizational support networks across six European regions, tasked with assisting local authorities in implementing climate and sustainable energy policies, actions, and investment programs.

Regional Coordination Framework :

  • In the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, the State, the National Energy Agency (ADEME), and the Regional Council are united in the “Regional Working Community,” which coordinates territorial animation for local authorities.
  • AURA-EE supports this regional territorial coordination and manages a regional network of departmental facilitators from local energy and climate agencies and energy syndicates.

Implementation of Specific Actions for Territories

AURA-EE wishes to create a network of stakeholders at the departmental level, leveraging its knowledge of the facilitators and barriers to action as well as territorial dynamics in the transition. This network will facilitate collaboration among departmental coordinators of SECAPs (Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans) facilitators to work cross-functionally on regional climate-energy strategies. It aims to provide a comprehensive view of the needs and challenges identified within the regions, such as transition management, climate-air-energy planning, implementation levers and barriers for action, and more.

Over its three-year span, the OCTOPUS project will network territorial stakeholders, creating an exchange space around local needs through meetings and shared resources (tools, methods, funding sources, etc.).

The project will also benefit from the expertise of AGEDEN as a regional partner, to work on "energy sobriety narratives," integrating topics on energy and environmental transition into cultural and artistic activities to make them more accessible for a wide audience.

European Partners

[Updated : November 2024]