Why energy democracy can enhance landscape democracy in the energy transition: some reflections on the Italian case

The energy transition towards renewable energy sources is unavoidable in order to reduce gas emissions by 40-70% within 2050 (Paris, 2015). In the last two decades, we have witnessed frequent cases of opposition and blocks to the installation of renewable energy technologies by local communities, because of the landscape change associated to them. Local initiatives aiming at 100% self-sufficiency can be a challenging approach for a sustainable energy transition, safeguarding both the landscape democracy and the energy democracy. According to studies in sociology, the success of these bottom-up processes at community level depends on the socio-historical backgrounds and on the consequent capacity of acting in a cooperative perspective for the management of common goods. Special attention will be paid to Italian regional contexts. According to current literature, landscape architects are called to be facilitators for integrating knowledge and promoting reflection among different disciplines and backgrounds. This contribution want to address the role of research and practice in landscape architecture as facilitator, supporting communities in envisioning their own energy transition towards renewable energy.