The workshop brought together 13 participants, including ten UrStrom members and three external stakeholders. It provided an opportunity to examine the community’s existing stakeholder network, identify groups that remain underrepresented and discuss how participation could be broadened in the future.
Preparations began with discussions on which groups would be both relevant and realistic to engage. Particular attention was given to younger people and tenants, who were identified as important groups for UrStrom’s future development.
Invitations were shared through municipal youth groups, local sustainability networks, Engineers Without Borders, mailing lists and personal contacts. The workshop was also promoted during a Fridays for Future demonstration on 27 February.
This outreach helped UrStrom connect with people outside its existing membership and better understand the challenges involved in engaging new stakeholder groups.
Exploring participation and social gaps
During the workshop, participants discussed the stakeholders currently connected to UrStrom, the relationships between them and the groups that are still missing from the community.
The discussion also covered:
- the onboarding of new members;
- the social analysis of membership;
- barriers to engaging younger people and tenants;
- the role of digital and smart-grid expertise;
- possible improvements to future stakeholder-engagement activities.
Participants’ contributions were captured through handwritten notes and collective brainstorming. These results are now being organised according to the PVSmile Stakeholder and Social Gap Mapping framework.
Lessons for future engagement
The workshop demonstrated that reaching underrepresented groups requires sustained and targeted engagement. Despite the outreach activities, only a limited number of younger people participated.
Nevertheless, the process produced promising results. Two of the three external attendees expressed a strong interest in UrStrom, showing the value of inviting people from outside the existing membership into energy-community discussions.