This is a CTP of initiative: INFORSE ‐ CLER (France)
2007: Changing the course in Energy Policy The intense debate about the future energy policy of France taking place in 2007 was a critical turning point for CLER, making the organisation directly involved as an advocacy on national level. The main aim was to empower the citizens in relation to their own energy situation, changing them from just being subjects to be important actors in the energy transition. CLER advocates for a decentralization of the French energy system, establishing the idea of energy independent regions as an important part of future energy policy. CLER employs two persons to play an active role in the debate and the organisation becomes an important political player.
The debate was carried out after an invitation by the French Minister for Ecology and Sustainable Development Allan Juppé. It had a broad environmental scope, going beyond energy questions. A number of different NGOs were invited to the debate. The debate was part of produce new environmental laws – ‘Loi de Grenelle I’ in 2009 and ‘Loi de Grenelle II’ in 2010.
The NGO Nicolas Hübbe Foundation proposed an Ecological Pact in relation to the French presidential election in 2007. As a part of this pact the politicians should involve themselves in public debate about future environmental development in France. In 2003 CLER and other NGOs had developed a lot of ideas for future change, but these ideas lacked a base in the political landscape – that they got in 2007.
Some of the ideas were clearly contested in this political debate. Not all French politicians and energy utilities are pro renewable energy. However, the basic idea of having a debate about future development, including transformation of the energy system, was not contested.
The development was not foreseen, but is it can, however, be seen as a logical consequence of lack of agency of the good ideas developed in 2003.
CLER learned the importance of being able to master political lobbying in order to get political influence. CLER managed to place renewable energy on the political agenda in a country dominated by nuclear power. Now renewable energy is considered an indispensable part of the energy system. These lessons learned were important is relation to CLER’s role in the next big public debate about future energy policy, dominated by conservative forces, using market conditions to argue against energy transition. A representative from the organisation Enercoop, related to CLER, says that the situation can be described by this quote from Mahatma Gandhi: First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win.
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