Hydrogen Valley in Cyprus: Insights and Strategies for Citizen Engagement

In remote areas or islands like Cyprus, the isolated energy system, high energy consumption in the transport sector and projected excess electricity production from solar sources create favourable conditions for establishing a hydrogen valley. But even after addressing technological, managerial, economic and financial challenges, the success of a hydrogen valley hinges on the acceptance and engagement of the local population. The role of citizens is under-researched by academia and overlooked by policymakers. Our paper’s contribution is unique data from a purposefully developed survey of Cypriot residents. The findings reveal robust support for the renewable energy transition in principle, with 90% expressing supportive views, of which 57% ‘strongly support’ the transition, and notably, middle-aged, more educated and fully employed individuals showing the strongest support. At the same time, our results show that 62% are unfamiliar with the concept of a hydrogen economy. The promising finding is that 80% of citizens are ‘very likely’ (25%) or ‘somewhat likely’ (55%) to engage in discussions or activities related to the creation of a hydrogen valley in Cyprus. Gender differences in the willingness to engage are, however, evident: 32% of males indicated they are ‘very likely’ to participate versus 23% of females. We conclude that the prevailing citizen behaviour in Cyprus is “Seeking Information”, and we make policy suggestions outlining the top ten engagement tools to foster awareness among the general population and the top ten strategies targeting active supporters of hydrogen in Cyprus to elevate their involvement to ‘Action’ and ‘Advocacy’ levels of engagement.