Advocacy and promotion of renewable energy

The EKOenergy label functions as a tool to promote the use of renewable energy. The growing demand for EKOenergy-labelled energy increases our visibility and allows us to reach progressively more people, organisations and companies, including various stakeholders of the energy sector. 

Our steady growth increasingly attracts the interest of larger corporate consumers too. This gives us many opportunities to repeat the call for a world powered by 100% renewable energy and to highlight the importance of developing renewable energy sources in harmony with nature. 

Your consumption of EKOenergy-labelled energy increases the positive impacts EKOenergy makes every year. To read about the tangible impacts we make thanks to EKOenergy users and sellers, see our Climate Fund page or have a look at our recent newsletters.

Contributing to market development

One of the aspects covered by our criteria is the reliable tracking of energy and the avoidance of double counting.

We encourage existing tracking instruments and systems to collaborate or coordinate to avoid double tracking and simplify processes for local and international energy consumers. In countries where there are no established markets for energy attribute tracking, EKOenergy promotes dialogue among relevant parties and shares information. 

Throughout the years, EKOenergy has contributed to the development of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Scope 2 Guidance and to the activities of a few working groups of IRENA Coalition for Action. We were among the first to promote renewable energy deals in countries such as Russia and Brazil, and the first I-REC-based renewable energy purchase in China was EKOenergy-labelled.

Encouraging leadership

Encouraging leadership and speeding up the energy transition are important aspects of our work.

By choosing EKOenergy-labelled energy, consumers not only go the extra mile but also help us pave the way for others.

By choosing EKOenergy-labelled renewables in countries where buying renewable energy is not common yet, consumers have made it easier for us to get in touch with local energy companies as has been the case in countries such as India, Brazil, Russia and China. This contributes to making green contracts more accessible to all consumers.

In mature renewable energy markets, opting for an additional quality label is an important signal too. It helps to garner interest in topics relevant to our ecolabel among a growing number of energy companies and consultants and urges them to make EKOenergy more accessible for their clients too.

Our publication One Tool to Cover Five Dimensions of Leadership in the Transition to 100% Renewable Energy explains how using EKOenergy contributes to the 5 dimensions of leadership, regardless of the size or sector of businesses and illustrates this with concrete user cases.

Raising awareness for consumer empowerment

One of the ways we promote the use of renewables is by sharing information. Our focus is on positive steps: EKOenergy amplifies every step in the right direction, big or small. We encourage consumers to choose renewables and build on that choice, adding extra positive impact. This way we raise awareness and empower consumers.

EKOenergy has joined processes such as the consultations on the LEED Green Building Standard’s criteria regarding renewable energy use, and we also prepared courses about green electricity use for LEED. We have joined Climate Action Network Europe’s campaigns and activities to promote the use of renewables and we are in contact with CDP and the RE100 regarding technical criteria for the sourcing of renewable energy by large corporate consumers worldwide.

Speaking at conferences and webinars

EKOenergy is open to cooperation with sector events and campaigns. We have spoken and moderated sessions at various conferences to reach an international audience. We often share information in one-on-one online meetings with energy consumers, speak at events, join and enact communication campaigns and organise meetings with other market stakeholders to reach more consumers.

• We have participated in the annual REC Market Meeting for over 10 years, often as an official supporting association of the conference. We are a supporting organisation of the I-REC Standard Conference too. 
• EKOenergy is also a member of the RE-Source platform, the organiser of the RE-Source conferences. 
• EKOenergy has been a supporting member of three Corporate Energy Series conferences.
• We have previously presented at the events of our sellers and we’re open to collaborating with you too!

Outreach via communication campaigns

We develop communication campaigns which often continue for a duration of a year. Through these campaigns, we reach out to promote the use of renewable energy in specific sectors. For example, in the past years, we have set up campaigns focusing on the fashion industry, breweries, cosmetics companies and the video gaming sector.

We frequently join forces with other NGOs to promote climate action and the use of renewables, participate in the Fridays for Future demonstrations almost every week and support online campaigns of the members of CAN (Climate Action Network) International. 

Encouraging youth participation in the energy transition

In the past years, EKOenergy’s Secretariat has hosted more than 150 volunteers and trainees. The volunteers assist EKOenergy’s activities by reaching out in their languages and calling for climate action, which provides them with skills useful in their working life.

Many of our long-term volunteers come via the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) Programme, an EU-financed programme to allow youth (aged 18-30) from the EU and neighbouring countries to volunteer in another country.