8 THE ENERGY CHALLENGE IN HUNGARY …
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The core activity of the Club is its monthly meetings where members
discuss, in an informal setting, climate change, energy-related and environmental issues, ideas and concerns. Alternatively, Club members invite
experts to have a discussion or give a presentation on a given topic of
interest.
Methods for Intervention
The Changing Behaviour research project studied successful and less
successful demand-side management programmes in an effort to establish general success factors (Mourik et al. 2009; Vadovics and BozaKiss 2013). As a partner in the project, GreenDependent attempted to
incorporate many of the identified success factors in the intervention
methodology in order to create lasting change. For example, creating a
community is important so that participants do not feel alone in their
efforts; besides, they can share experience and learn from each other,
too. Some methods and tools were developed to allow for flexibility as
well as to cater to the communication and learning needs of people with
different backgrounds and various levels of experience.
Building on the findings of the Changing Behaviour project
(Heiskanen et al. 2010), Table 8.2 summarises how small groups, and,
in particular, the Climate Club, can help overcome barriers to behaviour
change and, at the same time, create capacities and skills for change.
Households were not involved in the design phase of the pilot project,
as it was based on ‘best practice methodology’ identified in the Changing
Behaviour project. Apart from this, however, they are invited to take an
active role in planning the content of the monthly meetings, in initiating
activities in the larger community, and in the organisation of the club
meetings, e.g., by providing homemade food and drinks.
Framing the Energy Challenge
The energy and climate change challenge has been communicated to and
discussed with households as a challenge that potentially has an impact
on all aspects of their lives, which, in turn, has an impact on how serious the challenge is going to be. Households were invited to consider
their everyday life from the point of view of how much energy they use
and what they use it for, taking a systemic perspective. They also considered how they can limit the impact of energy and climate change in
89
The core activity of the Club is its monthly meetings where members
discuss, in an informal setting, climate change, energy-related and environmental issues, ideas and concerns. Alternatively, Club members invite
experts to have a discussion or give a presentation on a given topic of
interest.
Methods for Intervention
The Changing Behaviour research project studied successful and less
successful demand-side management programmes in an effort to establish general success factors (Mourik et al. 2009; Vadovics and BozaKiss 2013). As a partner in the project, GreenDependent attempted to
incorporate many of the identified success factors in the intervention
methodology in order to create lasting change. For example, creating a
community is important so that participants do not feel alone in their
efforts; besides, they can share experience and learn from each other,
too. Some methods and tools were developed to allow for flexibility as
well as to cater to the communication and learning needs of people with
different backgrounds and various levels of experience.
Building on the findings of the Changing Behaviour project
(Heiskanen et al. 2010), Table 8.2 summarises how small groups, and,
in particular, the Climate Club, can help overcome barriers to behaviour
change and, at the same time, create capacities and skills for change.
Households were not involved in the design phase of the pilot project,
as it was based on ‘best practice methodology’ identified in the Changing
Behaviour project. Apart from this, however, they are invited to take an
active role in planning the content of the monthly meetings, in initiating
activities in the larger community, and in the organisation of the club
meetings, e.g., by providing homemade food and drinks.
Framing the Energy Challenge
The energy and climate change challenge has been communicated to and
discussed with households as a challenge that potentially has an impact
on all aspects of their lives, which, in turn, has an impact on how serious the challenge is going to be. Households were invited to consider
their everyday life from the point of view of how much energy they use
and what they use it for, taking a systemic perspective. They also considered how they can limit the impact of energy and climate change in