A methodology for community engagement in the introduction of renewable based smart microgrid

Introduction of new technologies is necessarily a social and cultural transformation that implies adaptation to a new context, co-created by the interaction between those intervened and interveners. Sustainable technologies should be aimed to preserve basic functions of socio-ecological systems while limiting evolution of unsustainable practices, as it is the case of non-conventional renewable energy sources. In this research we propose a methodology of intervention for the introduction of smart microgrid system in a rural community. The introduction of new energy technologies in a rural setting is a challenge, since it generates changes in patters of energy use that affect the demand of the system. Smart microgrid systems have the advantage of being more resilient than conventional approaches to renewable energy, as they can adapt to changes in the demand and through time. The proposed methodology is based on the concept of a community as a socio-ecological system approach affected by a technological intervention, aimed to move towards a stage of more sustainable use of resources. The method is divided in three stages, each one focused on enhancing elements of the socio-ecological systems and integration among stakeholders: trust, diversity, boundaries of the system, territoriality, adaptability and reflexivity. This methodology is validated in a case study on smart microgrids development in a rural community in the north of Chile. The application of this methodology highlights the importance of learning processes among stakeholders, specially the development of reflexivity within developers. Adoption and adaptation to new technologies depends on the characteristics of each community, but it can be enhanced when participation shapes the evolution of the technological intervention, opening up to a diversity of expectations associated to the complexity of the system. (C) 2011 International Energy Initiative. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.