Overview

Funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme, ECHO is a four-year journey to rethink how we design and support energy communities. Spanning Türkiye, Greece and Portugal, ECHO sets out to build Excellence Hubs: locally rooted, cross-sectoral spaces where public institutions, researchers, innovators, and citizens come together to change the game of energy transition from the ground up. These hubs will become more than coordination platforms; they are instruments of capacity, of trust-building, of structural change.
At a time when Europe needs both speed and fairness in its green transition, ECHO focuses on what truly makes the difference: equipping local ecosystems with the tools, networks, and autonomy to shape their own energy futures.

Excellence Hubs Concept

Excellence Hubs are multi-actor innovation spaces that support the development and scaling of community-driven energy initiatives. Designed to fit national contexts, each hub will serve as a focal point for training, experimentation, and co-creation, bringing together universities, businesses, municipalities, and citizens.

These hubs will:

• Strengthen local innovation ecosystems.
• Enable testing and piloting of new energy services.
• Facilitate policy uptake and cross-border learning.

Objectives

ECHO aims to:

• Establish regional Excellence Hubs that enable the emergence of energy communities.
• Promote cooperation between academia, public authorities, industry, and civil society.
• Enhance knowledge and skills across the energy community value chain through targeted training.
• Launch real-life pilot projects that address energy poverty and foster citizen participation.
• Facilitate policy integration and ensure replicability across diverse local contexts.

Expected Results

ECHO will produce a wide range of practical and strategic outputs, including:

• Training programmes and capacity-building activities.
• Innovation toolkits and methodological guides.
• Case studies and documented pilot outcomes.
• Policy briefs and strategic recommendations.