Regional energy and sustainability

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Andreas Löschel
• Subject Area: Operations Management and Computer Science for Business Administration ; Data Management, Data-Intensive Systems, Computer Science Methods in Business Informatics
• Term: since 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 462287308

The sub-project " Regional energy and sustainability" develops a strategy for medium-sized cities to use digital technologies through which they can promote the use of renewable energy, sustainable behavior and the expansion of sustainable energy production in the region. It will explore whether targeted information, gamification approaches, and a positive motivational approach can encourage the use of regional energy and support the expansion of renewable energy in mid-sized cities and their surrounding areas. In view of a stagnating expansion of onshore wind power plants, which is also due to local resistance against plant construction, a promotion of acceptance and active participation plays an elementary role for the energy transition. Accordingly, this subproject will comprehensively investigate possible barriers around the topic of sustainable electricity demand and the regional expansion of renewable energies. Medium-sized cities are in the focus of the considerations, since they and their surroundings are particularly suitable for the expansion of wind power and large-scale photovoltaic plants due to the often good potentials. On the one hand, it should be better understood under which conditions regional, sustainable energy is perceived by residents as particularly worthy of support. On the other hand, factors are to be identified through which the regions and their inhabitants increasingly support the common goal of 'sustainability'. The co-benefits for medium-sized cities, i.e. the positive effects and potentials of sustainable behavior and the promotion of renewable energies for the regions, will also be focused on. These co-benefits can, for example, contribute to the regional development of medium-sized cities and increase the attractiveness of the locations from the perspective of both industry and the population.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 5393: The future smart town
• Co-Investigators: Professor Dr. Jörg Becker; Dr.-Ing. Thomas Hupperich