Public acceptance of renewable energies is fundamental to further increasing their share in the overall energy supply. Ecologic organised a series of five future labs to investigate public acceptance at the regional level and to elaborate policy recommendations on how to generate further support for renewables.

The acceptance and support of the broader public are fundamental preconditions for further increasing the share of renewable energies in Germany. A lack of such support might for example lead to a slowing down of the planning and permitting processes for renewable energy installations, due to time-consuming participation processes and stakeholder consultations.  Moreover, support from local authorities depends largely on the dedication and commitment of local players.

Ecologic and the Institute for Futures Studies and Technology Assessment (IZT) investigated the acceptance of renewable energies in Germany. While the IZT focuses on the local level, Ecologic paid particular attention to the regional level. Ecologic hosted five future labs (or "future search") to openly discuss and debate the issue with representatives from local authorities, NGOs, science, business and other stakeholders and to develop visions about a positive future. Solar power, wind turbines and biomass took centre stage at the workshops. The aim of the project was to identify and investigate resistance to renewable energies and to jointly elaborate policy recommendations on how to increase public acceptance of and support for renewable energies.

The report Public acceptance of renewable energy on the regional level and the reports of the five future labs are now available for download on the Conference Website (only in German).

The project results were presented at the conference Erneuerbare Energien: Akzeptanz vor Ort verbessern organized by the German Federal Ministry of Environment and the Centre for Technology and Society (CTS), which was held on 19 April 2007 in Großräschen. The presentation by Stephanie Schlegel Regionale Visionen für die Nutzung Erneuerbarer Energien can be downloaded.