In recent years, the energy transition has become a focal point of social controversies and struggles. Indeed, means developed to reach a carbon-neutral society often conflict with issues of class and territorial inequalities. In Europe, a particular subject of attention is the conversion of highly fossil fuel dependent regions which often appear to be the poorest of the continent. Scholars discuss constraints faced by citizens to participate in decision-making and the conditions for the ecological transition to strengthen democracy. However, political issues raised by the changing process of production itself remain undocumented. 

My research will overcome this blind-spot through a case-study. The region of Western Macedonia produces 40 % of the lignite-fired electricity of Greece, the 2nd producer of the EU (4th worldwide). The coal phase-out launched in 2019 affects (directly or indirectly) 10 % of the active population which already reaches the highest rate of unemployment in the EU (27%, World Bank, 2020). This ISRF Fellowship will allow a fieldwork of 8 months based on semi-structured interviews, observations and discourse analysis. Going beyond the main discussion that focuses on job-losses and opposes economic and ecological interests (Newell, 2021, Bécot, 2023), I will address energy workers’ sense of disempowerment : how do the multi-scale governance of the transition, the transformation of forms of work and the emergence of consumers’ “energy communities” affect their political agency? How do they navigate these new political constraints to participate building a better future for their communities?

By placing energy workers at the centre of the analysis, this project will thus provide a unique insight on the democratic issues raised by the transformation of the energy complex of social relationships. Through a critical discussion on green capitalism and current policies, it will contribute to the search for a more emancipatory transition process.