91Ö±²¥

This three-year project (2020-2023) is led by Dr Enora Robin and funded by an Early Career Fellowship from the Leverhulme Trust. It explores the ways in which finance shapes the potential for just energy transitions, focusing specifically on the deployment of decentralised solar energy systems in four cities (London, Marseille, Accra and Maputo) and their underpinning financial models. Specifically, this research project asks:

• Which financial instruments and sources of financing are mobilised in community-led decentralised energy projects?
• What are the main financial challenges faced by individuals and groups implementing these projects? How can we address those? 
• How do different business models and financial arrangements mediate communities’ access to clean, reliable and affordable energy? 
• How can we embed justice concerns in the ways in which we think about the role of finance in low-carbon energy transitions? How do we ensure that finance and low-carbon energy projects advance urban justice?

By answering these questions, this international and comparative research programme will raise the profile of projects that contribute to low-carbon energy transitions, it will facilitate knowledge exchange and will provide new insights into the ways in which finance can support the creation of more just and environmentally sustainable cities.