Renewable energy targets are only meaningful if planned capacity can actually be built. Yet social resistance remains a largely overlooked factor in understanding why renewable energy projects are delayed or stalled.
Drawing on evidence from nine Global South countries, this research, led by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) Latin America in partnership with the JustRE Alliance, explores the relationship between social resistance and the gap between planned and installed renewable energy capacity. It finds that media sentiment can provide an early warning of implementation challenges up to three years in advance, highlighting the need to treat social viability as a core part of renewable energy planning, investment, and implementation.
