30 March 2026 – Why technology alone cannot deliver decarbonisation without political governance, social equity and the active involvement of citizens and local authorities.
The energy transition is often described as a technological challenge. Yet the discussions that emerged during the event “Energy Decarbonisation Strategies and Sustainability for End Users”, held on 6 February in Milan, suggest something different: the real obstacles are political, social and institutional rather than technological.
The conference, chaired by Ilaria Losa, explored how international scientific recommendations — particularly those developed within the Club of Rome and its Earth for All report — can translate into concrete local policies.
Experts including Club of Rome members Anders Wijkman and Ugo Bardi and representatives from across local and regional governance and academia highlighted a crucial point: technologies for decarbonisation already exist, but their implementation depends on governance capacity, public acceptance and coherent policy frameworks across different levels of government.
Technology is no longer the main barrier
Renewable generation, electrification of consumption, energy efficiency technologies and digital energy management systems are now mature or rapidly advancing. From a purely technical perspective, the transition is increasingly feasible.
However, progress is slowing not because of technological limitations but because of institutional and political constraints. The transition requires long-term policy consistency, stable investment frameworks and coordination between European, national, regional and local authorities.
In other words, the key question is no longer which technology will solve the problem, but whether governance systems are capable of managing a transformation that produces benefits in the long term but costs in the short term.
Citizens are not just consumers anymore
Another major shift highlighted during the discussion concerns the role of citizens. European energy policy increasingly views users not as passive consumers but as active participants in the energy system.
Through smart grids, digital tools and decentralised generation, households and communities can now contribute to electricity production, demand flexibility and local energy markets. Energy communities represent one of the most promising models in this regard, allowing citizens to collectively generate and manage renewable energy while strengthening local engagement.
However, these models require more than technological infrastructure. They depend on regulatory frameworks, local institutional capacity and public trust.
Without these conditions, even well-designed initiatives risk remaining pilot projects rather than scalable solutions.
The social dimension of the transition
Perhaps the most important message emerging from the conference was that the energy transition cannot succeed without addressing social inequalities.
Climate policies often assume that environmental benefits will automatically generate political support. In practice, the opposite often occurs. Public support for the transition tends to weaken when policies translate into higher energy costs, infrastructure developments or lifestyle changes.
This is particularly evident when policies distribute costs uniformly across society. Such “flat” approaches ignore significant differences in income levels, access to alternatives and exposure to energy costs.
As several speakers emphasised, inequality is not simply a side issue to be mitigated during the transition. It is one of the structural drivers of the climate crisis itself. If policies fail to address distributional impacts, the transition risks being perceived as unfair — and therefore politically unsustainable.
Cities and regions at the centre of implementation
While energy strategies are often designed at European or national level, their implementation largely occurs at the territorial level.
Regions and cities are where renewable installations are built, where energy infrastructure interacts with local communities and where the social consequences of climate policies become visible. This makes local authorities key actors in the transition.
At the same time, it also places them at the centre of potential conflicts. Support for climate policies at the national level can quickly turn into resistance when concrete projects affect local landscapes or communities.
For this reason, local governments need more than regulatory targets. They require financial resources, administrative capacity and policy flexibility to adapt strategies to territorial contexts.
Without this support, ambitious climate objectives risk becoming politically and administratively unmanageable.
Communication as a policy tool
Another recurring theme during the event was the growing gap between scientific knowledge and public narratives.
The challenge is no longer a lack of scientific evidence. Climate science, energy modelling and technological options are widely documented. What often fails is the ability to translate this knowledge into narratives that resonate with citizens and decision-makers.
Communication should therefore be treated as an integral component of public policy, rather than as a final step in policy implementation. Clear and credible narratives can help build social consensus, reduce misinformation and make long-term benefits more visible.
In the absence of such efforts, even technically sound policies may face political resistance.
A systemic transformation
Ultimately, the energy transition is not a single-sector reform. It is a systemic transformation involving energy systems, economic structures, social institutions and cultural narratives.
Technology alone cannot deliver this change. Nor can policy instruments without public legitimacy.
What the Milan conference made clear is that successful climate strategies must integrate three dimensions simultaneously: technological innovation, social equity and political governance.
If one of these elements is missing, the transition risks stalling.
But if they are combined effectively, the energy transition can become not only an environmental necessity but also an opportunity to redesign economic systems around sustainability, resilience and social wellbeing.
