The EU’s human security based approach towards energy poverty

Abstract

The phenomenon of energy poverty shows that energy issues, traditionally linked with international, regional, and national levels of analysis, have wider economic and political causes that are being manifested at the community and individual levels as well. Latest energy crisis across the European continent, coped with some structural factors such are resource scarcity, energy transition, and war between Russia and Ukraine, emphasized individualistic consequences of the ongoing energy processes. The fact that approximately 42 million people in the EU are affected by energy poverty put the phenomenon of the energy poverty very high at the EU agenda. Clear connection of this topic with human security concept made the phenomenon of energy poverty justifiable to be analysed from the people-centred perspective. Therefore, the goal of this paper is to highlight human security approach as a solid framework for understanding and analysis of the energy poverty phenomenon in the EU. Review of the significant academic knowledge base on this phenomenon, secondary data analysis from the relevant European surveys related to this issue, and analysis of adequate EU policies and practices combating energy poverty will serve to outline state-of-playwhen it comes to the energy poverty and human security nexus at the EU level.