The DIALOGUES project has gained a better understanding of the role of citizens in energy transitions. By means of expert interviews, surveys and Citizen Action Labs (CAL), the project has collected novel data and stories on energy citizenship across Europe, including insights on how European citizens regard their position in the energy transition and how they can adopt a more proactive role. Furthermore, in addition to collecting new data, another important goal of DIALOGUES has been to reutilize existing data and thus, avoid duplication.

In recent years, open data has attracted increasing attention among researchers. The re-use of data is also argued to be good research practice. In the cases where it is possible to re-use data, the practice avoids expensive and duplicate efforts to collect similar data, avoids burdening informants with more data collection than necessary, and ensures that the efforts put in by those who provided data are utilized to its fullest effect. Thus, many argue that the re-use of data is also the ethically responsible thing to do. The FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) provide a framework for ensuring that data is not only open and accessible but also interoperable and reusable across different contexts, disciplines, and geographic locations.

In DIALOGUES, a team of researchers led by NTNU Social Research have identified and systematized existing and relevant data for energy citizenship research. The aim was to re-use quantitative datasets in a meta-analysis examining some important associations, such as the relation between gender, educational level and energy saving in the home. However, despite re-utilization of data is often portrayed as a straightforward matter, in practice several factors relating to the lack of adherence of existing data to the FAIR principles made re-utilization of existing data a challenging endeavor. In particular, three main barriers were identified throughout the process: finding relevant data in a sea of noise in existing repositories; the lack of standardization in data formats and documentation; and data being collected for different purposes/ focus, having different measurements of similar constructs.

However, despite the challenges encountered, the process has brought some positive outcomes. First, our actual meta-analytical results show that even with these obstacles, the re-use of existing data can be a successful source of insight into new research questions. Second, issues that can be improved when it comes to sharing energy citizenship data have been identified. Our results and upcoming guidelines will hopefully make the task of data re-use easier for future projects.

Authors: Martin Inge Standal and Lucia Liste (NTNU Social Research)