The Third Mission of University and youth engagement in renewable energy projects

Universities play an increasingly fundamental role in guiding territorial and regional development in the direction of the energy transition. The three main missions of higher education institutions are education, research and what is called the "Third Mission" of the University: the relationship that the University establishes with the territory to disseminate research results and provide its own contribution for sustainable territorial development. Considering some of the most important objectives of the 2030 Agenda, the reduction of emissions and the prioritization of renewable resources in energy production systems, these bodies have the task of guiding local and national institutions, and the entire citizenship. Among the solutions and alternatives for a more sustainable future, energy communities (CE) represent both a challenge and an opportunity for urban and rural centers, involving technological and social innovation. Citizen participation is a key point for the success of ECs and new methods of involvement must be sought and implemented, especially in relation to those groups of society that are often marginalized, vulnerable and not included in the decision-making and territorial planning process. The European project SCORE, "Supporting Consumer co-Ownership in Renewable Energies", within which this thesis is carried out, deals with the elimination of the barriers that prevent vulnerable groups from becoming an active part of the ECs. Among the latter, we certainly find young people of school age. The thesis deals with the research of the Third Mission projects of the Italian Universities which in recent years have dealt with involving young people in initiatives aimed at territorial sustainable development, therefore with a strong territorial and local imprint. Following the research, the projects corresponding to the requirements were selected and their characteristics analyzed. A reference framework has been developed that summarizes and organizes these characteristics and variables, to be used as a basis for the design and implementation of future projects for younger people, in the context of territorial sustainable development. Using the scheme as the main guideline, the design phase was integrated with the peer education methodology, considered suitable for the research target group. With the implementation of this methodology, an attempt was made to develop an activity that would orient learning in a "horizontal" sense, among peers, and not "vertical-hierarchical". The developed methodology was then applied to two case studies, Oulx and Sestriere, located in the Susa valley, Piedmont. The research involved 4 last year secondary 1st level classes, for a total of 66 boys and girls. Finally, five final recommendations were developed, based on the results obtained from the project.