Earlier this year, Pusch and Cité de l’Énergie hosted a groundbreaking event in Bern titled “Net-Zero Emissions Through Participation.” It brought together experts, municipal leaders, and innovators to discuss how participatory methods can accelerate the journey toward net-zero emissions. Among the key contributors was Joëlle Mastelic, professor at HES-SO Valais-Wallis and president of the Energy Living Lab Association, who presented cutting-edge research on social innovation and facilitated with Anastasia Ponomareva a hands-on session using the serious game E4Citizens.
Making participation fun and impactful with E4Citizens
Joëlle and Anastasia showcased E4Citizens, an innovative serious game designed to tackle energy transition challenges in a collaborative and engaging way. The session proved that combining education, play, and co-creation can transform complex topics like sustainability into tangible, actionable outcomes. Participants left inspired, equipped with fresh insights into how their communities can lead the charge toward a greener future.
Participation: an investment worth making
In an interview with Pusch Magazine, Joëlle Mastelic shared her deep conviction that while participatory processes may demand additional time and resources, they yield invaluable long-term benefits. “Participation helps break down silos within municipal services and fosters stronger engagement by addressing stakeholder needs from the start,” she emphasized. Joëlle cited examples of Swiss cities like Thun and Winterthur, which have successfully integrated participatory strategies at both the planning and implementation levels:
- Thun: Through European research initiatives, the city co-developed its climate strategy by involving all stakeholders in workshops to map out a pathway to net-zero emissions by 2050.
- Winterthur: Building on its established climate strategy, the city uses participatory tools like the WinLab platform to co-create actionable measures that ensure shared ownership of climate goals.
Breaking silos and driving collective success
Joëlle advocates for early adoption of co-creation approaches, ideally during the strategic planning phase. This proactive inclusion not only reduces resistance to later implementations but also creates a shared vision among stakeholders, ensuring smoother processes and more sustainable outcomes.
While participatory methods demand more time upfront, Joëlle points out that neglecting them often leads to costly missteps, such as poor community buy-in or outright opposition. One municipality she worked with faced significant resistance to a heating project due to its siloed planning, underlining the critical need for early and inclusive stakeholder engagement.
