As the need for energy security grows and climate goals become more pressing, it’s clear: how we produce energy must evolve. We need to shift towards renewable sources – and wind energy plays a vital role in that transition.
But wind (and other shared space projects) also raise valid concerns. Fears of turbines towering over homes and communities. Offshore impacts on seascapes and livelihoods. Worries about noise, the environment, and quality of life.
These are not abstract issues. They’re personal – rooted in what matters most: family, community, and wellbeing.
And yet, too often, the way projects are developed turns those concerns into entrenched opposition – even when people might otherwise be open to a fair and workable outcome.
“I’ve never felt so powerless in my life… I wish when I had heard about this development that I’d put my house up for sale.”
The real challenge isn’t “community engagement”; it’s understanding – and bridging – the gap
Through years of working across large energy, infrastructure, and extractive projects, one pattern repeats:
When community concerns are raised and not truly heard – when they remain unaddressed – communities are left with no real choice but to oppose.
Unaddressed concern becomes the foundation of opposition. It communicates:
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“You don’t care.”
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“We’re not important.”
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“You’re not able – or willing – to meaningfully listen.”
From the developer side, the experience can feel equally frustrating:
“We’re delivering energy solutions the world desperately needs… but we do come up against roadblocks. One of them is community opposition.”
So the story of renewables becomes a tale of two perspectives – each shaped by real pressures, risks, and responsibilities. This gap is well documented in academia and in practice, and it has multiple facets.
One of the most common is this: communities often learn about projects late, after years of internal development work has already happened.
“This development was probably in the making three or four years before we ever heard about it… and all of a sudden it’s announced and you’re expected to have an opinion on it… But we didn’t know enough or trust enough to have a strong opinion.”
And once that “left out” moment happens, trust becomes hard to rebuild:
“It becomes really hard to trust anything that comes after that. Because the first thing that happened was you were left out.”
Why ELSA exists
When people feel they’ve had no meaningful choice, no meaningful voice, and no meaningful respect, opposition becomes predictable – not because communities are irrational, but because the process has failed them.
If we want renewable projects to succeed at scale – and at pace – this gap between developers and communities needs to first be bridged.
That’s where ELSA comes in.
ELSA – the Earning Local Support Academy – is a practical initiative designed to help developers, communities, and authorities move from conflict to collaboration.
It’s about changing the approach from Decide, Announce, Defend to early meaningful engagement – to build trust, reduce risk, and design projects that protect what matters locally and deliver mutual gains.
It’s about earning trust and earning support – not through persuasion, but through credible process, clear acknowledgment of risk, and better design.
Equal partners, not an afterthought
The stakes are high. Energy security and climate targets are currently not being met. Renewable energy is essential – but projects often face fierce opposition or even failure, and communities are often left divided when proposals are imposed without fair process.
Drawing on years of sector experience — and recognising the urgency — ELSA has been developed as an approach that integrates renewable energy projects into broader community development plans from the outset.
The key is simple:
Bring communities in as equal partners before key local decisions are made – not as an afterthought.
That’s easier said than done. It requires capability, time, and a credible process — and it works best when it strengthens (rather than replaces) the existing project development ecosystem.
ELSA’s approach replaces traditional, reactive timelines with early collaboration. It supports developers to be transparent, flexible, and to listen actively – while communities can express their needs constructively and meaningfully influence project design.
Within ELSA, developers and communities tap into networks, skills, and practical processes to:
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address tough questions early,
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design projects aligned with local sustainable development, and
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implement mutually agreed solutions.
“It’s not just a method. It’s a mindset.”
Today, as renewable deployment accelerates into more contested shared spaces and scrutiny increases, trust is too often the first casualty – sometimes before a meaningful conversation even begins. Communities and developers can find themselves seeing each other as adversaries.
But the ELSA approach is designed to change that dynamic – replacing conflict with collaboration, and mistrust with mutual understanding.
At its heart, ELSA is about mutual respect – and the practical skills to translate that respect into better project design and better decisions.
Respect needs trust.
Trust needs credibility.
And credibility comes from showing up well, and working well together.
“It’s not just a method, it’s a mindset. Developers learn to approach communities with empathy and respect, and communities in turn begin to see developers as partners rather than invaders.”
Watch the 4 short videos: ELSA’s “Bridging the Gap” series
We’ve captured the unfolding ELSA story – and the shift it is mobilising – in four short videos, embedded below. You can watch them in order, or jump to the one most relevant to you:
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Video 1: Why the gap forms – and how unaddressed concern becomes opposition
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Video 2: The two perspectives – and the trust problem created by late engagement
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Video 3: What ELSA is – and why “equal partners” changes so much
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Video 4: Trust and mindset – how projects enable local teams, not local battles
You can access the above – and the new guide to ‘Designing Projects that Succeed’ – at www.earnlocalsupport.com
The transition will only succeed if we build it together
The transition to secure renewable energy will only succeed if we build it together.
If you want the practical “how”, start with the guide at the link above – and explore the ELSA resources from there. This blog gives links to the sector-specific business case for ELSA’s Renewables AT PACE for developers, communities, and authorities.
