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Energy Policy 37 (2009) 20182026

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Energy Policy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol

Local challenges in the promotion of renewable energy sources: The case of Crete
rie Angeon b,1 Evanthie Michalena a,, Vale
a b

ENeC Laboratory, UMR8185CNRS, Sorbonne and Paris 8 Universities, 75005 Paris, France tafort, 24 Avenue des landais, 63170 Aubie `re, France AgroParisTech ENGREF Centre de Clermont-Ferrand, UMR Me

a r t i c l e in f o
Article history: Received 3 June 2008 Accepted 27 January 2009 Available online 12 March 2009 Keywords: Local governance Renewable energy sources Islander territories

a b s t r a c t
Crete, the largest Greek island, attracts about 20% of the total Greek tourist activity and hosts more than 50% of all renewable energy projects situated in the Hellenic island territories. In this article, we probe the comparatively successful promotion of renewable energy applications among Cretan municipalities by identication of key components and drivers of local dynamics which facilitate the development of such innovative and collective projects. We then refer to a theoretical economic grid highlighting the strength of local factors (i.e. social and institutional forces) in co-ordination mechanisms. We conclude that for the case of Crete, both internal factors (such as local acceptance) and external elements (such as macrostructure) play a core role in successful implementation of renewable energy, and from this we propose a number of facilitating conditions which could help promote renewable energy production on other islands. & 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Nowadays Greece faces a multi-dimensional challenge: its rapid trajectory of economic growth (due to the industries of tourism and the maritime sector) will inevitably require increased electricity demand and a consequent rise in environmental concerns. The Greek island of Crete situated at a strategic crossroads between Europe, Africa and Asia (see Fig. 1) attracts more than 20% of the total Greek tourist activity and hosts more than 50% of all renewable energy projects situated in the Hellenic islander territories; mainly in the form of wind parks. The forthcoming proposed tourism increase, as well as the promising philosophy of sustainable development and the evolution of the legislative context which encourages the electricity production from renewable energy sources in the Hellenic energy system (in compliance with the European Directive 2001/77/EC), could motivate people of Crete to further adapt mentalities, procedures, instruments and methods for a sustainable energy consumption and production.
Abbreviations: EC, European Commission; EP, European Parliament; EREC, European Renewable Energy Council; EU, European Union; GGE, greenhouse gas emissions; NTUA, National Technical University of Athens; ODWC, Organisation for the development of western Crete; PPC (in Greek: DEH), Hellenic Power Public Corporation; RETs, renewable energy technologies; WCDE, World Commission for Environment and Development; YPAN, Hellenic Ministry of Development Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: michalena@hotmail.com (E. Michalena), valerie.angeon@agroparitech.fr (V. Angeon). 1 Tel.: +33 4 73 44 07 19. 0301-4215/$ - see front matter & 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2009.01.047

In this article, we analyse the promotion of renewable energy technologies (RETs) among Cretan municipalities drawing a particular attention to the consistency of local dynamics in the development of such innovative projects. We follow an economic academic approach, by putting an emphasis on social and institutional factors (i.e. quality of local co-ordination, propensity to collective action and local system of governance) which are likely to be considered as driving forces leading to sustainable management resources practices (Oakerson, 1992; Ostrom, 2000; Pretty, 2003). We present the determinants that characterise the societal context in which people take their decisions and behave. This concerns not only the organisational arrangements (structure of networks, propensity to co-operation and collective action, nonmarket co-ordination, etc.) but also the regulation framework system (institutional context, governmental policies, local system of decision and rules of action, etc.). We show in this paper the importance of such local factors using as a case study the success story of Crete regarding RETs. Our analysis is based on a survey of scientic and empirical literature on RETs. The main focus of approach of the article is theoretical and relies on a socio-economic grid of analysis of the adoption of RETs. In short, we argue that the sustainable diffusion of RETs is mainly related to the local societal context. This idea is quite different from those that are commonly put forward in works on innovative technology systems (such as RETs) (Gerstlberger, 2004; Tsoutsos and Stamboulis, 2005; Delre et al., 2007) which, although they consider the systemic characteristics of technologies and emphasise the dynamics of supply and

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Fig. 1. Location of Crete.

demand of energy (market niche approach), underestimate the consistency of the social and institutional context in which RETs are implemented. Our article intends to ll in this gap. Our reasoning is threefold: rstly, a rapid assessment of the political context of RETs use, allows us to focus on the renewable energy situation of the island of Crete which is recognised as a success story (Mirasgedis et al., 2000; Bakos and Soursos, 2002). The second part of this paper deals with the question of local social and institutional determinants (mainly social ties and networks, institutional thickness) and their impact on the efciency of the management of renewable energy sources. We then attempt to consider how these local factors apply in the study case of Crete. In the third part, we expose the main recommendations that stemmed from the results of our research. Finally, we draw some conclusions and proceed at a further proposal of how local societies could best accept the implementation of renewable energy projects.

country (the contribution of large-scale hydroelectric plants being included). Therefore, in an era where the greenhouse gas emissions from the human activities have already led at an increase of 0.6 1C of the average world temperature, and where production and consumption of solid fuels are responsible for 80% of these emitted gases (Piebalgs, 2006), the time limit for acting is becoming very restricted. Specic accelerating measures and tools dened and adapted to well appropriate contexts should thus aim at the reinforcement of the development of renewable energy projects.

2.1. RETs development in Greece and Crete: the state-of-the-art The electricity history of Greece should be distinguished into three periods: At rst, the electricity genesis period (18891949) was characterized by the efforts for the electrication of Greece and the presence of independent private electricity utilities.2 Secondly, the nationalization period (19501998) was marked by the dominant position of the Hellenic State-Owned Electricity Utility, which was called at the time Power Public Corporation (in Greek: DEH).3 This state-owned utility dominated the Hellenic electricity production, transport and distribution system, for many years, using the coal (lignite) as a primary fuel combusted in thermoelectric units, with minor contributions from hydroelectric plants (installed capacity of 3060.2 MW). The third and last period (from 1999 until today) is characterised by a liberalization of the electricity market (in compliance with the European directives 96/92/EC and 2003/54/EC) and therefore the opening of the electricity market to private investors. In February 2001, DEH te Anonyme in response to the Law was reformed into a Socie 2773/99 (YPAN, 1999) and the Presidential Decree 333/2000, a fact which (together with the set-up of the Hellenic Regulatory
Until 1929, 250 towns and 5000 people had electricity. In 1950, there were approximately 400 electricity companies in the whole Greece; this was the year that the foundation of DEH was decided for economic and social reasons.
3 2

2. Grasping the international and European political context concerning renewable energies For the rst time in 1992, more than 150 nations have signed the United Nations framework convention on climate change to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GGE) to 1990 level by the year 2000. This pledge was essentially relied on through voluntary commitments. Some years later, in 1997, the Kyoto Protocol (which rallied together 159 countries) proposed a reduction of GGE by 5% from 2008 to 2012 (with respect to the base year 1990). After this event, the promotion of renewable energy was a core component of the European electricitysupply approach, through the European Directive 2001/77/EC (EC, 2001); This role is strengthened nowadays by the recent Renewable Energy Roadmap (10 January 2007) (EC, 2007a) and a new proposal for a Directive (Eco and EP, 2008), with targets which are compulsory (binding) and should reach 20% of the European energy mix until 2020. These objectives concern the contribution of renewable energy into the gross national electricity consumption of each

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Table 1 Wind energy: velocities in Crete (data of 2005). 48 Surface (km2) Average velocity (m/s) Power (MW) Capacity factor (CF (%)) 38.2 10.1 1,192 43.9 49 23.9 10.9 742.4 47.8 410 16.8 11.5 513.6 49.6

Authority for Energy), ofcially announced the beginning of the electricity market liberalization. In 2006, the electricity consumption in Greece reached 55.8 TWh mainly produced by DEH. As far as RETs are concerned, although they have appeared for the rst time in the late 1970s in the Hellenic territories and although in 1993 the installed capacity of wind generators has reached 27 MW, the expected progress has not been achieved so far. Nowadays, most of the Hellenic electricity needs are dependant on traditional energy sources: coal (lignite) still covers 52.21% of them while the remainder is derived from oil (14.4%), natural gas (18.13%), large hydroelectric plants (12.08%), biomass (0 16%) and wind energy (3.02%) (YPAN, 2007). The situation of Greek islands is not so much different from the one of the continent as they are mainly fed by oil which is imported from mainland. Nevertheless, both historically and in the present, Crete the fourth larger island of the Mediterranean sea occupies a specic position with the development of RETs. 2.2. Potential of RETs development in Crete According to data of the Regulatory Authority for Energy provided on May 2008, 134.750 MW of wind energy is installed and operate in Crete, 0.17 MW of biomass, 0.567 of photovoltaics and 0.477 MW of small hydroelectric plants (RAE, 2008). In terms of electricity produced, the most ofcial given data concern the ones of 2006, which are as follows: In Crete, in 2006, some 335 GWh of electricity were produced by wind energy, 0.48 GWh by biomass, 0.2G Wh by hydraulic energy and (for comparisons sake), 2.569 GWh by oil (YPAN, 2007). Further perspectives of RETs in Crete have been analysed by the Regional Energy Agency of Crete in co-operation with the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) (Tsioliaridou et al., 2006). Crete is considered to have an additional wind electricity potential of more than 900 GWh/yr (see the wind energy potential in Crete, Table 1 and Fig. 2). Moreover, the available potential on the island for the electricity generation by the solar energy is approximately estimated to be 16.5 GWh/yr. As far as hydraulic resources are concerned, they are considered as being sufcient for domestic, industrial, agricultural and tourism needs but they are far from being considered as abundant (Manios and Tsanis, 2006). Up to the year 2025 it is estimated that only 6 MW of small-hydrounits can be installed (Mourelatos et al., 1998). Biomass potential (currently, agricultural residues) is mainly used on the island to produce heat. This electricity potential is very high and the feasibility to build further biomass-red plants in Crete has already been examined by scholars (Vamvuka and Tsoutsos, 2002; Caputo et al., 2003; Boukis et al., 2007). Electricity generation from biomass products could potentially reach 360 GWh/yr: this creates new horizons for the energy mix of Crete. Renewable energy sources importance for Crete becomes more and more evident: The annual increase of electricity demand in the island is approximately 9% (a high percentage in relation to the 5% of the continental Greece). Domestic and

tertiary sectors are the most important ones, representing 70% of the total electricity consumption in the island (PPC, 19751994). However, electricity loads uctuate over the years. For example, during 2002, the maximum electricity peak in Crete reached 513.1 MW and the minimum 121.8 MW, while the electricity consumption was of 2.341 GWh. To meet growing demand, thermoelectric plants of 695.4 MW and wind parks of 67.35 MW have been installed (PPC, 2000). In the island, there are also some photovoltaic installations which have an installed capacity of 300 kW (Tsoutsos et al., 2004). Due to the price of imported oil and according to the estimations of 2000, the cost of electricity production in Crete was 2.6 Mh (and it would be higher by 1.45% if wind energy was not installed (Tsikalakis et al., 2005)). Many scientic studies have been conducted on the issue of renewable energy penetration in Hellenic islands (see for instance NTUA, 1992; (NTUAAI, 1995; ODWC, 1995; Vamvuka and Tsoutsos, 2002; Karalis and Zervos, 2005). Due to their rich renewable energy potential, they constitute an ideal eld for development and exploitation of RETs as well as an indispensable part of planning for sustainable development. Strongly related to environmental concerns, the renewable energy eld includes a sustainable footprint. Continuously emphasised by international organisations, the concept of sustainable development stated for the rst time in the Brundtland Report in 1987 (WCED, 1987) is commonly dened as the preservation of goods for the present needs as well as for the ones of future generations. As such, it requires equity and ethical considerations. Allowing stakeholders to be collectively involved in the process of decision making, sustainable development also embodies governance principles.4 Governance principles stress out multi-actor and non-hierarchical decisions.5 As it can be analysed as part of sustainable development procedures, the adoption of RETs in some territories instigates collective decision-making processes and local arrangements. It thus highlights the way energy planning can be carried out at a decentralised level. In the following section, we will give an overview of how important the role of local determinants (i.e. social, organisational and institutional features) is in these situations.

3. On the consistency of local determinants in the promotion of renewable energies resources According to numerous structural policies and actions relative to environmental concerns in which European roadmap for renewable energy is a part of the local and regional authorities can contribute at a large scale at the realization of xed objectives (EC, 2007b). These authorities which form local administrative units can be regarded as appropriate levels that defend specic interests ensuring a communitys ability to collectively respond to challenges. In the last decades, the economic literature has highlighted the consistency of local determinants (mainly the quality of social ties and the institutional thickness) to favour sustainable development practices which mainly rely on collective decision-making processes. Such questionings are rooted in the analysis of co-ordination mechanisms and linked to local governance considerations.
4 The Earth summit (held in Rio in 1992) enhanced governance practices by assuming in the Agenda 21 a comprehensive plan for the consistency of local acting. 5 More details on the concept of governance are given in the next sections (Sections 3 and 4).

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Fig. 2. Wind potential in Crete (Aivalioti and Tsoutsos, 2007).

3.1. Some theoretical insights on the social and institutional roots of local co-ordination and governance Although the study of governance is not new, it nowadays gains more and more currency among scholars. It can be considered as a focal point in one of the most controversial and permanent debate in the eld of public policies that deals with the matter of centralised versus decentralised systems. The main question raised is about the efciency of decentralised units. It is argued that contextual (relational and institutional) elements are essential in this kind of decision-making processes (Feiock, 2005). Lots of theoretical and empirical results explain the success of decentralised entities in effective actions promoting both development and nature conservation (common pool resources). Stressed by the Anglo-Saxon school of common property (Ostrom, 1990, 2000; Oakerson, 1992), these ndings come under a systemic approach as they are explicitly based on the linkages between economic activities and natural systems at the community level. Fitting into this scheme, several authors assert that forms of co-operation between stakeholders fully favour social acceptance of RETs (Ornetzeder and Rohracher, 2006; Gross, 2007; Mallet, 2007). To a large extent, these authors explain that the best level is local to ensure such sustainable practices that facilitate the adoption of common goals and future. These societal key features that encapsulate a communitys propensity to act collectively by continually adjusting its internal institutional and social structure are dened by some authors as social capital (Ryding and Holman, 2004). Social capital refers to the norms and networks that enable people to act collectively (Woolcok and Narayan, 2000). This general denition emphasises the internal social and cultural coherence of a society (e.g. the norms and values that govern interactions among people).6 It serves several purposes, social capital covers three dimensions (Coleman, 1990).

It refers to rules and norms people are submitted to, it emphasises the importance of trust in social relations, and it characterises the set of relations that people develop and their networking. Dened broadly, social capital includes both the formal and informal rules that co-ordinate collective action and goal achievement. The growing recognition that the local concerns (such as social capital in its both relational and institutional characteristics) play a major role in natural resource management and sustainable practices is associated to an institutional and collective action framework.7 We shall now examine these two internal factors which are fundamental aspects to understand local co-ordination mechanisms: the structure of networks (quality and density of social links) and the institutional thickness that links the members of a community. 3.2. The structure of networks The advantages of connecting people with others can be classied in two categories: (i) collecting and diffusing information and (ii) collective action. Cohesive networks permit to better collect and diffuse information. Social capital allows better organisation and sharing of information. Social norms provide better information on individuals behaviour, and reveal individuals preferences. They reduce risk and uncertainty as well as the costs for the information gathering. Social interactions can provide valuable information about technology or characteristics of demand. We can, therefore, assert that the economic function of social capital is to reduce all costs related to a communitys operation (transaction costs, etc.). Social capital entails a willingness to act in a context of condence-favouring individuals actions in mutually supportive ways. The frequency of interactions leads to trust in personal relationships and networks and discourage malfeasance in economic transactions. In other words, social relationships prevent individuals to behave opportunistically. In more intuitive
7

6 This set of rules (norms, values, etc.) that shape peoples behaviour are dened as institutions which constitute, following North (1990), the rules of the game for actors.

This notion is inspired from FEIOCK (2005).

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terms, the fact that individuals interact with each other repeatedly helps them to stabilise their relationship as they develop a status of honesty and reliability. The principle of collective action mainly relies on the ability to put resources together in order to achieve goals that would not be individually reached. 3.3. Institutional thickness Institutional thickness refers to some properties of social capital that promote the convergence of agents representations, visions, goals, etc. It can be dened as informal norms (rules, systems of values, etc.) that help to the development of a collective identity. These norms shape homogeneity (of preferences, values, beliefs, future, etc.). They are usually originated in people forming social connections. These interactions are based on principles of trust, mutual reciprocity and keeping commitment and rules of action. Such embedded relationships accumulated into a community network invests the reputation and reciprocity in the reliability of partners (Gulati and Gargiulo, 1999; Feiock, 2005). The combined effects of social factors create a strong community, where the accumulation of local and social ties allows the agents to better deal with conicts and different interests. Two notions are evoked in comprehending community attachment mechanisms, involvement and sentiment (Kasarda and Janowitz, 1974; Goudy, 1990; Stinner et al., 1990). The rst concept designates the density of relationships in formal and informal organisations within the community (intracommunity relationships). The second reects the degree of satisfaction people expressed about the community they belong to. Community attachment refers to linkages that can facilitate actions among individuals or groups which helps them to share common views and promote greater collective efciency. The quality of social ties facilitates then the sharing of resources to achieve common goals. All these determinants are also favoured by the physical and cultural proximity that is grounded in small areas. This geographical constituent reinforces the accurate consistency of networks as it increases spatial closeness, relational coherence and institutional thickness. Crete is commonly described as a strong community where these three components (social density, institutional thickness and geographical closeness) play a core role in its historical and actual stance. We shall now examine how social and institutional characteristics inuence the denition and adoption of a common strategy regarding environmental concerns.

4. Crete and its social and institutional thickness regarding RETs acceptance What favours successful collective actions regarding strategy on renewable energy sources in Crete? Is the example of Crete a success story based on the efciency of local determinants for the introduction of RETs? In this section, we set out the Cretan case study and analyse whether or not the stakeholders are implicated in a collective decision making processes by activating social and institutional factors. As indicated in the literature (Najam and Cleveland, 2003), energy issues can be understood in the context of sustainable development as it is central to the three classic dimensions (economic, social and environment). Energy is actually a source of environmental stress at global and local levels. It is also a vector of economic growth and well-being that permits the satisfaction of human needs and improves quality of life. In this respect, RETs

sustainable footprint implies or supposes that local communities benet from them. Several studies have indicated what is considered to be a potential positive effect for islander municipalities. Among them a priority seems to be the need for local electricity security, the expected increase of jobs, as well as the resulting economic benets from specic projects and equipments of renewable energy (such as the increase of farmers income by the use of biomass). All the benets are not necessary economic ones; they can also be related to intangible values like reputation and image (i.e. ecological image of the island). Although the benets from renewable energy sources potentially cover a wide spectrum for the local societies of the Hellenic island, the progress of new installations has been (and is still) could be faster. This was due to the large volume of administrative documents that are need to be presented during environmental and construction authorizations, to the high investment costs which often act as obstacles for new investors, to the possible instability that wind integration can bring into the system,8 and to the potential local reactions which try to preserve the natural and cultural heritage and resources of the island. Nevertheless, and taking into consideration the benets and the existent potential of renewable energy, local societies have already initiated actions for further promotion of the renewable energys use, such as programs of information and diffusion of knowledge regarding RETs, or the drafting of local sustainable energy plans. For example, the project COMPARES was a project funded by the European Commission, aiming at the diffusion of information on RETs and saving energy among the local societies of Crete, during the period 1/6/200630/6/2007. European collaborations and visits, pamphlets and days of information, use of media, childrens involvement and benchmarking led to encouraging results from the response of the public, the local enterprises and the local actors. Moreover, during the environmental authorization for the erection of RETs, Cretan municipalities have a determinant role to play on how many MWs of renewable energy projects will be installed in their territory. This decision process and the following action to introduce RETs into the island implies a wide involvement of different stakeholders and associated interests. The large number of these local actors concerns residents, local authorities, private enterprises, press and communication networks, institutions and non-governmental organisations, administrative services, nancing institutions, etc. In general, the system of actors which interfere in any kind of decision (even with often contradictory opinions) is, therefore, of a non-hierarchical, multi-acting type (Simos, 1990). Many classications of the different actors participating in the governance decision making process regarding RETs implementation, have been developed and they are more or less linked to the case studies they refer to (Valette, 2005; Gross, 2007; Mallet, 2007). We try in this section to build a general typology of the main actors usually requested to have a current role in such collective decisions in the case of RETs implementation. The concept of governance implies differentiation among local actors. In this sense, it forms part of the family of hybrid forums (Callon et al., 2001). Forum, here, is regarded as being an opportunity for hosting dialogue and enabling sharing of a broad range of views. The term hybrid refers to both the differentiated nature of the actors involved, as well as the difference in the level of decisions. As emphasised by Callon et al. (2001), hybrid forums
8 The maximum installed capacity of wind farms is constrained by the stability consideration of the electrical system (the installed capacity of all the interruptible units should not exceed 30% of the maximum hourly electricity consumption occurred in the previous year (Mourelatos et al., 1998)).

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come out of situations of radical uncertainty (be it scientic, technical or social; in our case environmental concerns) and allow actors to share responsibilities. Therefore, responsibilities (and decisions) are considered to be collective. As we exposed above, these actors can defend several different (and contradictory) interests but the more they t in their local atmosphere,9 the more they will success in adopting shared goals and collective decisions. Four categories of actors could be classied:

phase of environmental authorization. Dynamic or inuencing and passive actors face difculties (barriers to involvement) (Manios and Tsanis, 2006): (i) Breakdowns in communication between municipal and central government authorities exist that often lead to lack of data useful for scientic researches; this is happening in some rare cases. In many cases, collaboration is smooth and the information sharing is continuous. The importance of trust as a solid cement for dense relationships can then be proved. It is worth noting that the quality of social ties (characterised by a high level of sociability) can favour the collection and diffusion of information which is a key component explaining the ability of agents to implement a project. (ii) Data are often provided with difculty by local municipalities. In a small number of authorities, the personnel (public servants) still consider scientic research as outside their statutory remit, and thus information ow can be problematic and limited. In some cases and under severe pressure from their elected political heads, data are nally provided. The data collection process is, therefore, becoming rather difcult and time-consuming, since more than one visit to each municipality is often required to collect all the necessary information. An additional problem is that often the spatial denition of data is limited, as data are not available at the local district level. And even the existent ones, are awarded with difculties and after persistence. Even the National Statistic Service often has limited data which can quell some areas of scientic research. Nevertheless, in general terms, from 2001 until present, a considerable number of renewable energy projects has been implemented (mainly wind generators). This success was not only due to the familiarization of local actors with the wind energy projects (Crete was the rst island which was equipped with wind parks) but also to the fact that local municipalities realized positive benets with RETs (Bakos and Soursos, 2002). The size of the island has also contributed to the minimization of negative visual externalities coming from wind generators. Only few negative cases (usually regarding the positioning of wind generators) have been noted. The installation of a wind park for instance has been accused by a single farmer for improper location in a forest area. This particular objection was overruled, but in many cases investors are obliged to conclude a previous agreement with the local residents that no objection will be arised during the RETs projects installation. How can be this Cretan success explained? Many reasons can be evoked. But from a more general perspective, we can note that a specic form of social organisation concerning RETs acceptance has emerged. According to Ornetzeder and Rohrachers (2006) results, we can observe for the Cretan example, that social norms are embedded in a dense and cohesive social network but are facilitated by a co-ordinating structure supported by a favourable legislative context given by the Hellenic laws and the European and International directives which recognise the importance of the local municipality level. The co-operation is mainly based on mutual trust. Trust ensures that relevant information are freely discussed and disclosed. Interaction and mutual completion in groups are primarily responsible for that effect. The abovediscussed process towards Cretan success is illustrated in the following Fig. 3. In light of the example of Crete, we outline some general recommendations for a higher use of renewable energy sources and sustainable development practices.

 the authorities which provide the legislative framework

encouraging the implementation of RETs (national or European legislative frameworks) and ensure the respect of law10; the local authorities (authorities of proximity which are supposed to accompany and organise the decision making process and apply the nal collective decision or choice); the dynamic actors (press and communication networks, local research and academic institutions, experts or committed people) who follow-up and intervene sometimes in the political arena by signicant and spotted actions. They can be considered as inuencing actors who try to capture authorities (be it local, national or European ones) in the respect of their own interests. This rational behaviour is demonstrated by the theoretical and empirical results of the seminal school of Public choice (Buchanan, and Tullock, 1962; Tullock, 1978); The passive actors (i.e. civil society) who are directly concerned by energy evaluation taking place in their territories but who follow-up inactively any intervention in their environment. This last category of actors constitute in fact a real target as they are more or less informed about environmental concerns and can be then shown as potential agents that could be able to act in the respect of their own interests or to be inuenced by others and capture authorities.

 

This multi-actors system theoretically corroborates with good governance mechanisms. This nexus of public action emphasises the attributes of social ties (such as the propensity of agents to organise and to co-ordinate, the development of informal or formal rules which foster collective action, reduce opportunistic behaviour and diminish transaction costs, etc.) and institutional concerns. 4.1. How does this governance scheme operate in Crete? What can be observed for the island of Crete is that there is a strong interest from investors towards RETs and a good investment in the environment (Mourelatos et al., 1998). The cornerstone which dominates renewable energy integration (mainly wind-energy integration), is usually between the national authorities, responsible for the authorization of Public Power Corporation and private investors for the implementation of renewable energy projects and local authorities who intervene mainly in the
9 Expression inspired from A. Marshalls (1890) concept of industrial atmosphere which refers to the set of formal and informal customs, traditions and practices fed by social and institutional phenomena anchored in the social, geographical and institutional context of concerned area (i.e. interpersonal face-toface contacts, formal or informal cooperation between rms, tacit circulation of commercial, nancial or technological information, collective learning process, common culture and institutional framework, etc. 10 These actors are called by Simos (1990) shadow actors as they indirectly inuence the political framework in which the collective decision is set. In the case of RETs, the EU constitutes a "shadow actor" because its inuence on RE is very much crucial, but not clearly visible. The role of national authorities (for the case of RETs) can also be qualied of shadowed.

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Local atmosphere Initiatives for RETs promotion Collective decision making process Wide involvement of different stakeholders Organisational arrangements, cultural proximity, convergence of representations Local success of RETs implementation Trust which ensures information circulation, data sharing, etc. Institutional Thickness of Cretan community Structure of Networks

The creation of consuming-networks is important for the Hellenic RETs market given the absence of market niches in the energy system. This market segmentation could be accomplished based on criteria of local specic characteristics and/or to vendor and consumers type criteria.11 Promotion strategy should not neglect the intrinsic characteristics of the societys mindset. Within this strategy, the role of key actors in each Cretan Region should be identied, as well as the specic mindset of Cretan societies. Rogers innovation theory (Rogers, 1995, 2005) constitutes the backbone when designing policies that meet conservative and reluctant local societies towards the adoption of innovative systems. Hence, the adoption of innovative systems by local municipalities is easier, if,

 RETs strengths are easily revealed (advantages brought from

the system are evident at a good value for money) for example;

 There is compatibility between the technologies and the

existing infrastructures;

 There is a potential to assess the outcome of the system;  Procedures for the systems implementation are simplied 
(neither intensive information nor special capacities are demanded); Specic local conditions (dense and cohesive networks, institutional thickness) exist.

Efficient local Governance and Coordination

External Drivers (macrostructure)

International, European and National institutional and Legislative context

Fig. 3. Efciency of local factors in the RETs implementation in Crete.

5. Recommendations In Greece, even if case studies on successful RETs applications are numerous, several scholars point-out the lack of societal support as well as the insufciency of a diffusion policy regarding these technologies (Tsoutsos and Stamboulis, 2005; Franzeskaki et al., 2008). Therefore, further actions should be implemented to stimulate the social organisation concerning RETs in Crete. To achieve these aims, governmental support is necessary. A support on information for European and national funding possibilities for the research and the installation of RETs, as well as the dissemination of results of research and a constant communication between governmental and local authorities, are also necessary consistent actions. Separate procedures for the licensing of renewable energy projects in Crete, as well as an appropriate promotion strategy have the potential to prove fruitful and meet RETs supply targets. This promotion strategy should respond to current system state-of-the-art and to future potential of sustainable energies being based at specic forces formatted in the Hellenic context, concerning energy demand and energy systems functioning. It should also be in consistency with the model of individual decision-making which obeys to the following causal explanation (Kotler, 2000): Product familiarization leads to consumers persuasion, and consequently to his choices conrmation, to the products selling and nally to the structure of a consuming network. Renewable energy market segmentations and the establishment of consuming-networks (client-cables, buildings, domestic, industry, mobility sector, etc.) are, therefore, important.

The promotion strategy should also set clear objectives, like for example turning out local societies to be sensible towards sustainable development activities and eliminating poverty. Moreover, the strategy should include a clearly established action plan. Actions could include the encouragement for the elaboration of environmental studies from the municipalities as well as spreading of information on funding possibilities and research results. For the RETs promotion, the European Commission has organised numerous campaigns. The rst campaign was organised during the period 19992003, as a part of a strategy described in the White Book for the European Strategy and Framework of Actions for RE (ERECINSULA-EUFORES, 2004). Other actions should include the tracing of mechanisms to follow-up the progress of renewable energies in each territory, the establishment of procedures for the communication between authorities at a local, national, European and international level, the encouragement of study-visits in foreigner countries for the demonstration of best practices, and even the appointment of a coordinator in each municipality on actions related to sustainable development (including RETs activities). The action plan should be drawn according to priorities in respect to needs and potentials of specic territories, the local degree of acceptance and familiarization as well as political willingness. The set-up of a long-term vision is necessary to provide citizens with sufcient time for the adoption of new ideas. The research of suitable means of advertisement depending on the preferences of the selected target groups (i.e. television in most of the insular areas) and the establishment of a centralized mechanism for the assessment of this promotion strategy are equally necessary. A special attention should also be attributed to the compatibility between the selected promotion strategy and the national natural and cultural heritage features: In general, Cretan cultural identity should always be kept in the epicenter of all policy regarding renewable energy projects, towards the objective of how these projects not only will maintain, but also further promote the special traditional elements of each region. Towards this aim, only renewable energy projects which are
11 A more extensive and detailed elaboration on the criteria of the markets segmentation is presented in (Trypanagnostopoulos et al., 2005).

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compatible with the special characteristics of an area should be integrated. At a further step, renewable energy projects should be linked with other ecological or cultural projects (bio-cultures, ecological cultural festivals, activities concerning ecotourism, etc.). The special characteristics of each territory (e.g. geo-morphologic particularities, energy, socio-economic and demographic characteristics, local natural resources, level of green awareness) should be studied before the establishment of a RETs promotion strategy. A focus should also be brought on the differentiated use of RETs on the basis of the specic solutions that renewable energy projects could provide. In case, for example, where territories are located in isolated areas, the promotion idea should be based on the concept that the use of these projects will increase regional competence, and improve local quality of life, via the increase of funds for municipalities [in Greece the Law 3468/2006 oblige investors to dispose 3% of their prots on the selling of wind electricity at the Municipality of the territory where the project is built]. On the other hand, where territories are characterized by small physical dimensions, the emphasis should be attributed to the use of energy plants orientated to the restriction of the visual pollution coming from oil stations or wind-turbines. Solar systems or hydraulic stations should be preferred in this case. A supplementary attention should be drawn in case of territories with ecological fragility and the existence of protected areas. In areas with inadequate funds or competences nally, renewable energy projects should support the idea of povertys elimination, and the exploitation of the very well-known mental and physical strength of young people via the creation of new jobs, and their specialization on innovative technologies. What decision makers should always keep in mind whatsoever is that RETs should be benecial in terms of environmental, economic and social points of view and that local population are the nal end-users of these benets. What should be sought in such a promotion strategy for the Cretan paradigm is the searching of indications for the economic return of the investment on renewable energies. Substitutions from the government, the annual decrease of cost of RETs and the annual increase of solid fuels cost, external cost to be internalised in the total price of energy feeding by oil, should form a powerful set of motivation to be taken into consideration so as local societies are encouraged to have shares in the renewable energy projects. Some stakeholders should actively be involved in the renewable energys integration procedure. As they constitute a decision-making level, each municipality should possess a local plan for the planning of RETs in its own territory, before the promotion strategy is set. Both at a local and a national level, the regular assessment of renewable energys state-of-the-art a current renewable energy policy, is necessary: The use of indicators (such as the degree of using natural resources, and technologies friendly to the environment, as well as the rate of saving energy, CO2 emitted and reduction of oil cost succeeded) should be taken into account as well as social features (endogenous relationships) and institutional concerns, should be identied and registered. The above-mentioned approach would bring our theoretical insight into Cretan practice, leading to a situation in which local collective powers can create a comparative advantage (Holder, 1996).

sources of energy. Regarding this issue, a positive evolution has been marked in Hellenic energy policy, mainly through the expansion of renewable energy use in the Hellenic energy mixture. In this article, dealing with RETs acceptance in Crete, we designed some strong arguments for effective promotion of renewable energy through local municipalities. Regional Municipalities of Crete can be considered as authorities of proximity (able to identify local needs and best organise local societies). This co-operation with the Hellenic Government, and the rest of regional municipalities could lead to fruitful results towards the adoption of a better sustainable future for Crete. In this respect, we have acknowledged that internal factors (such as local acceptance) and external elements (such as macrostructure) play a core role. In a dynamic perspective, the combined analysis of these internal and external factors could provide a consistent framework to understand how small islands can reduce their economic and environmental vulnerability. This constitutes a starting point for a further analysis of resilience.

Acknowledgments Part of this research has been conducted thanks to the support of the Hellenic Institution of Scholarships (in Greek: IKY). We would also like to thank Jeremy Hills for proof-reading the manuscript.

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