Yesterday marked a significant milestone for the ENTRACK project as it held the first meeting of its newly established Advisory Board. This critical gathering brought together a diverse group of experts from European networks and institutions, all dedicated to supporting ENTRACK's ambitious objectives.

The Advisory Board, co-led by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, through Matthew Bach, and the Institute for European Energy and Climate Policy (IEECP), is designed to provide continuous inputs and feedback to the project, ensuring its successful implementation. By facilitating the dissemination of outcomes, especially beyond the consortium countries and timeframe, and defining sustainability strategies, the Advisory Board will play a pivotal role in driving ENTRACK forward.

The meeting focused on several key areas, in particular WP2 - Understanding local social energy and stakeholders’ engagement for social energy co-design. João Pedro Gouveia (NOVA) presented the preliminary outcomes of the Taxonomy of social-energy plans and the stakeholders mapping in the four pilot countries: Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal.

Moreover, Francesca Calzolari presented the preliminary results from the Climate Explorers activities, based on bottom-up participatory ethnography and citizens interviews in pilot municipalities.

To ensure a robust and dynamic Advisory Board, members were carefully selected from the partners' networks to include the most engaged and proactive stakeholders, coming from the Joint Research Centre, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Just Transition Platform, the Rural Pact Community, universities and more. This selective process aimed to foster a group that is both diverse and deeply invested in the project's success. The Advisory Board is scheduled to convene biannually. During these meetings, members will present their insights, methodologies, and approaches, providing a critical assessment of the project's methods. This feedback loop is essential for refining ENTRACK's strategies and ensuring its methodologies remain effective with stakeholders at the local level.

The first meeting concluded with a strong sense of commitment from all participants. The collaborative spirit and expert guidance of the Advisory Board are set to propel ENTRACK towards achieving its mission of advancing energy transition across Europe and beyond.