{"id":587,"date":"2021-12-17T10:33:44","date_gmt":"2021-12-17T10:33:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prod-web.com\/?p=587"},"modified":"2022-01-30T16:04:38","modified_gmt":"2022-01-30T16:04:38","slug":"when-citizens-make-policy-frances-climate-citizen-convention-energy-efficiency-and-the-importance-of-education","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/energyefficiencymagazine.com\/index.php\/2021\/12\/17\/when-citizens-make-policy-frances-climate-citizen-convention-energy-efficiency-and-the-importance-of-education\/","title":{"rendered":"When Citizens Make Policy: France\u2019s Climate Citizen Convention, Energy Efficiency, and the Importance of Education"},"content":{"rendered":"[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” column_margin=”20px” equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”top” column_direction=”default” column_direction_tablet=”default” column_direction_phone=”default” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” row_border_radius=”none” row_border_radius_applies=”bg” overflow=”visible” advanced_gradient_angle=”0″ overlay_strength=”0.3″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” shape_divider_position=”bottom” bg_image_animation=”none” gradient_type=”default” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-2-percent” column_padding_tablet=”inherit” column_padding_phone=”inherit” column_padding_position=”all” column_element_spacing=”default” centered_text=”true” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” column_link_target=”_self” column_position=”default” advanced_gradient_angle=”0″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” overlay_strength=”0.3″ width=”1\/3″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” animation_type=”default” bg_image_animation=”none” border_type=”simple” column_border_width=”1px” column_border_color=”#1e73be” column_border_style=”solid” gradient_type=”default”][image_with_animation image_url=”1270″ image_size=”full” animation_type=”entrance” animation=”Fade In” hover_animation=”none” alignment=”” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” image_loading=”default” max_width=”75%” max_width_mobile=”default”][vc_column_text]\n

Benoit Lebot<\/strong>
\nformer Chair of the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC).<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”padding-2-percent” column_padding_tablet=”inherit” column_padding_phone=”inherit” column_padding_position=”all” column_element_spacing=”default” centered_text=”true” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” column_link_target=”_self” column_position=”default” advanced_gradient_angle=”0″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” overlay_strength=”0.3″ width=”1\/3″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” animation_type=”default” bg_image_animation=”none” border_type=”simple” column_border_width=”1px” column_border_color=”#1e73be” column_border_style=”solid” gradient_type=”default”][image_with_animation image_url=”1335″ image_size=”full” animation_type=”entrance” animation=”Fade In” hover_animation=”none” alignment=”” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” image_loading=”default” max_width=”75%” max_width_mobile=”default”][vc_column_text]\n

Jurei Yada<\/strong>
\nCoordination Lead, Bern Network on Financing Data for Development,
\nPARIS21 Secretariat<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” column_margin=”default” column_direction=”default” column_direction_tablet=”default” column_direction_phone=”default” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” row_border_radius=”none” row_border_radius_applies=”bg” overflow=”visible” overlay_strength=”0.3″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” shape_divider_position=”bottom” bg_image_animation=”none”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_tablet=”inherit” column_padding_phone=”inherit” column_padding_position=”all” column_element_spacing=”default” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” column_link_target=”_self” column_position=”default” gradient_direction=”left_to_right” overlay_strength=”0.3″ width=”1\/1″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” animation_type=”default” bg_image_animation=”none” border_type=”simple” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]\n

In October 2019, a group of 150 French citizens from all backgrounds and age groups were brought together by the French Government to form the <\/span>Climate Citizen Convention (CCC)<\/span>. Their task? Nothing less than developing France\u2019s future policies for climate action. These were ordinary citizens, selected completely at random, with no formal training in climate issues or public policy. Yet in the space of six months, they produced a set of recommendations for the French President that surprised many experts in their ambition and vision for how France could reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in line with its commitments under the Paris Agreement. How did they achieve this \u2013 and what does their success tell us about citizen participation in policymaking, climate ambition, and even accelerating energy efficiency ? <\/span>The Process <\/span>The members of the CCC began their journey with only a basic understanding of the main issues relating to climate change. To conduct their work,they first embarked on a series of informatory interviews with a range of experts from different fields: physicists, climate change specialists, policymakers, economists, and civil society representatives. Then over ten working weekends, the group met to pen a series of 150 proposals for the French Government, putting forth a range of financial, technical, and behavioral measures for local and national implementation. These proposals were presented to the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and his cabinet in June 2020 and included the following recommendations, among others:
\n\u2022 To amend the nationalconstitution to introduce strict environmental protection clauses for future French legislation.
\n\u2022 To lower energy demand through greater energy efficiency in the built environment, transportation, and industry including by introducing mandatory provisions for deep renovation of existing building stock,\u00a0 <\/span>banning coal and oil furnaces for space heating, reducing the highway speed limit from 130km\/h to 110km\/h, and mainstreaming carbon disclosures in industry.
\n\u2022 To ban commercials and advertisement campaigns for products and lifestyles incompatible with a low carbon society.
\n\u2022 To encourage and prioritize investments into renewable energy. The CCC\u2019s work concluded with the French Government\u2019s decision to adopt 146 of the 150 proposals, which will now go through France\u2019s legislative process to become law.
\n<\/span>The Lessons <\/span>The CCC shows us the critical importance of educating citizens as the basis for participatory, fact-driven policymaking. For example, members of the group may not have started out with any notion of energy efficiency, but through successful citizen engagement and knowledge sharing with experts, they ended up proposing it as one of the solutions for France to attain its target of reducing GHG emissions by 40% by 2030. <\/span><\/p>\n

This casts doubt on some inherent assumptions, such as that ordinary citizens care more for convenience and continuing their normal lives than engaging with technically complex questions \u2013 let alone endorsing potentially disruptive policy changes to protect the planet. For the energy efficiency community, there is a lesson here for how we could communicate, advocate, and raise the visibility of energy efficiency beyond our field. There is also hope that certain biases can be overcome through processes like the CCC \u2013 not one citizen who was selected chose to leave the group before the work was done, regardless of what their personal views may have been on the climate crisis. Knowledge is at the heart of climate action, and is in particular at the heart of the energy transition we face. The question is how we can promote open exchanges and knowledge sharing approaches that reach those who may not otherwise have chosen to care, learn more, or affect change. Benoit Lebot <\/span>has more than 20 years experience in energy efficiency. During his extensive career, he has worked for the French National Energy and Environmental Agency (ADEME),the International Energy Agency (IEA), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

From 2014-2019, he served as the last Executive Director of the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC), where he worked with member states in further elevating energy efficiency on the international policy agenda, including at the Group of 20 (G20). In his current role, Benoit advises the French Government on clean energy and sustainability issues at the Ministry of Ecological and Inclusive Transition.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Jurei Yada <\/span>has spent her career in intergovernmental cooperation working with G20, OECD, and developing economies to advance their clean energy, climate, and sustainability policy goals. At IPEEC, she worked with Benoit to implement the G20\u2019s collaborative energy efficiency agenda, including as Deputy Head (2018-19), and represented IPEEC at COP numerous times. She currently manages the activities of the Bern Network on Financing Data for Development \u2013 an OECD-based multi-stakeholder alliance dedicated to achieving more and better resourcing of sustainable development data for the 2030 Agenda.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The views and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the authors and do not represent those of the institutions where the authors are employed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Benoit Lebot
\n<\/span>former Chair of the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency
\nCooperation (IPEEC).<\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span>Jurei Yada
\n<\/span>Coordination Lead, Bern Network on Financing Data for Development,
\nPARIS21 Secretariat<\/span><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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