The Impact of German Energy Policy on Household Energy Use

This chapter reviews current energy policy and civil society efforts to achieve the targets set out for Germany’s Energiewende (Energy Transition), with a specific focus on their impact on household energy use. The existing energy governance structure, conflicting energy policy commitments, and the emergence of public resistance to renewable infrastructure are identified as significant challenges for national-level policy. At the household level, the dominance of efficiency and smart choice solutions and the pressure to maintain traditional patterns of consumption are identified as key limiting factors in an effort to deliver real reductions in household energy use.