Energy Communities represent an innovative solution of not only environmental and economic but also social value: collaboration and sharing are in fact the key principles of this model, which aims to increase the sense of community, local economic development and energy democracy. By setting up new CERs and collective self-consumption groups, Fondazione Cariplo wants to help promote the social inclusion of the most vulnerable and increase cohesion in local communities.

Recently, the phenomenon of CERs has been growing significantly, a sign of increasing sensitivity and urgency on the issue of the climate emergency and energy poverty, but their diffusion is still often hindered by the lack of specialised, technical, administrative, legal and economic-financial skills on the part of the actors who intend to set them up.

With the "Alternative" grant, Fondazione Cariplo provides a concrete and effective tool for moving towards an alternative future to fossil fuels. In addition to an financial contribution, Fondazione Cariplo will provide a Technical Assistance service that will accompany the local entities involved along the entire regulatory and bureaucratic path leading to the definition and establishment of the Communities.

17 parishes, social cooperatives, non-profit and government agencies: these are the beneficiaries of the Foundation's support, which has allocated a total of one million euros in financial contributions. The new Renewable Energy Communities will be distributed in the provinces of Como, Cremona, Lecco, Lodi, Milan, Pavia, Varese and Verbano-Cusio-Ossola.

Seventeen photovoltaic systems will be installed, capable of producing a total of about 5,000 MWh of electricity per year, the equivalent of the energy consumption of 1,700 households, for a total value, including savings on bills, incentives for shared energy and the sale of unused energy, of about 650,000 euros per year. In addition to a significant economic benefit, the system will also have great advantages for the climate and the environment: it is estimated that around 1,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions will be avoided each year.

Fondazione Cariplo thus promotes a non-extractive energy model with an ecological approach.