Innovation in cooperatives for an energy transition in Rio Grande do Sul/Brazil

a policentric approach

Abstract

The Rio Grande do Sul Policy on Climate Change established that the State would be responsible for redirecting the economy towards climate adaptation. During the first decade, central components for adaptation, such as the energy transition or the expansion of the bioeconomy, did not become public policies. This article seeks to contribute to the argument, still little appreciated in the debate, that cooperativism has significant potential for advancing this agenda. To this end, it uses the polycentric approach, developed by Elinor Ostrom, in the interpretation that the transition towards greater sustainability in Rio Grande do Sul can occur from simultaneous and independent innovations on multiple scales. Aiming to realize this argument, the article records four innovations underway in the Centro Region, established autonomously and voluntarily by cooperatives in their areas of operation. Among the results, it stands out that these initiatives allow the democratization of control over capital, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the generation of energy from renewable sources, providing opportunities for new productive chains in the rural environment and avoiding stagnation.

Keywords: Adaptation. Distributed generation. Bioeconomy. Cooperativism.