New Report: How are consumers driving the clean energy transition globally?
The global energy transition is underway — but it cannot succeed without the active participation of the very people it’s designed to serve: consumers. As the largest economic group globally, consumers have immense power to shape the transition to a fairer, more sustainable energy system—and evidence shows they are ready to act.
Around the world, consumers are not just adopting cleaner habits but they are increasingly mobilising at scale, changing habits, advocating, and shaping the policies that define our energy future. This shows their potential to act as powerful change-makers, yet the role of organised consumer action in the clean energy transition remains underutilised and underfunded.
Today, we launch a new report, The Impact Initiative: Amplifying Consumer Voices in the Clean Energy Transition, as part of our Clean Energy Futures Programme. Drawing on contributions from more than 25 consumers organisations, the report spotlights real-world initiatives where consumer mobilisation is actively reshaping the energy landscape. From school-led behavioural change in India to mass public petitions in Germany and grassroots campaigns in Brazil and Pakistan, consumers move beyond the role of passive users.
The report offers fresh evidence on what drives effective consumer mobilisation: clear calls to action, sustained community engagement, and trust. It also provides funders with a framework to identify and support high-impact initiatives, emphasising the role consumers play in energy transformation.
The challenge: Turning Support into Systemic Change
While 80% of global consumers support a shift to renewable energy and believe their choices impact climate change, individual purchasing decisions are not enough. To transform complex energy systems, collective action, policy reform, and consumer mobilisation must work hand in hand.
However, several barriers continue to hinder progress:
- Funding constraints – Short funding cycles make it difficult to build long-term impact.
- Structural limitations – Centralised energy systems leave little room for consumer input.
- Misinformation – Fossil fuel narratives continue to cloud public understanding.
- Bureaucratic obstacles – Navigating complex policy environments slows down grassroots momentum.
- Limited impact measurement – Many efforts track outputs but often overlook long-term outcomes.
Without strategic support, the energy transition risks becoming top-down and disconnected from real-world consumer needs. That’s why our report focuses on the important levers of consumer power: trust, local relevance and community leadership.
New Insights from Global Case Studies
Consumer associations are uniquely positioned as a trusted voice on the local relevance and value of clean energy. They have the skills needed to mobilise an engaged community in support of a successful clean energy transition.
Through six case studies—from Brazil, India, Germany, Pakistan, the Netherlands, and a global initiative—we illustrate the diverse and innovative ways in which consumers are already driving change. These initiatives span:
- Behavioural change – such as energy efficiency awareness campaigns.
- Collective action – community solar projects or cooperative energy groups.
- Systemic reform – advocacy for market and policy shifts.
By comparing models led by consumer groups, governments, and businesses, we show how trusted, localised approaches sustain engagement and deepen impact.
The report highlights the critical success factors for effective consumer mobilisation across three core domains: initiative design, organisational capacity, and external enabling conditions. It emphasises the importance of robust impact measurement to capture success and support continuous improvement.
For funders, the report offers a practical framework to identify, support, and scale promising initiatives, such as those showcased in the case studies.
The Road Ahead: Turning Potential into Power
As the clean energy transition accelerates, consumer mobilisation strategies are also evolving to meet new challenges and seize emerging opportunities.
Digital tools, platforms, and AI are increasingly being used to personalise engagement, provide real-time energy insights, and turn abstract concepts into practical, everyday actions. These innovations – when done responsibly - help to bridge the gap between awareness and action, and make sustainable choices accessible and compelling.
Looking ahead, we anticipate a rise in interactive approaches—such as digital storytelling, multimedia campaigns, and dynamic participation models—that could deepen consumer involvement and spark collective momentum. At the same time, where decentralisation does occur, we often see energy decision-making being brought closer to communities, highlighting the need for locally rooted strategies that tap into trusted networks and reflect on-the-ground realities.
Join Us
Ultimately, the clean energy transition cannot succeed without consumers at the centre. We are all energy consumers—and together, we hold the power to drive the shift toward cleaner, fairer, and more inclusive energy systems. But unlocking that power will take more than ambition. It will require investment, innovation, and strong partnerships that empower people where they are, with the tools they need to lead.
We encourage philanthropic actors to invest in strong, scalable consumer-led initiatives — turning consumer potential into collective power.
LEARN ABOUT OUR CLEAN ENERGY FUTURES WORK
To learn how you can support our work in clean energy and consumer mobilisation, contact: impact@consint.org.
