Too Young to Wait: How EYEN Built a Seat at the Energy Table, Federico Barbieri and Carlotta Ferri | Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Description

This episode is about the people who got tired of waiting their turn — and built their own table instead.

Marine Cornelis sits down with Federico Barbieri and Carlotta Ferri, President and Vice-President of EYEN – the European Youth Energy Network, a buzzing coalition of young minds who decided that youth in Europe didn’t need another panel slot or empty round of applause — they needed power, presence, and purpose.

🚀 From sidelined to central: It all began in 2019 at a flashy international conference in Canada where youth delegates were invited... but kept out of the room where it happened. So what did they do? They took their post-its and ideas to a bar outside the European Commission and sketched out a new vision: an organisation built by and for youth to have a say in shaping Europe’s energy future.

💡 Not another talking shop: EYEN doesn’t just publish position papers or run events — it’s become a think-and-do tank, launching initiatives like:

The European Youth Energy Forum
The Young Energy Consumers Task Force
The Energy Transition Career Compass
And (soon) the first-ever survey on youth energy poverty in Europe

🧠 Real talk, no tokenism: Federico and Carlotta are refreshingly honest about what it takes to build something meaningful — from struggling with Belgian bureaucracy to navigating what "youth" really means when you’re trying to serve students, young parents, electricians and policy nerds all in one go.

🔧 Behind the scenes: EYEN’s secret? A network of over 2000 active volunteers across Europe, fuelled by mutual support, shared purpose — and zero membership fees. Because no one should be priced out of shaping the future.

💬 “Every time a local youth organisation dies out, a connection between society and the energy transition disappears.”
💬 “We don’t just want to be included. We want to bring value.”

Why listen?
Because if we keep talking about democratisation without asking who’s in the room, we’re missing the point. This episode is a celebration of doing things differently — and a roadmap for those brave enough to start from scratch.

🎧 Listen now — and if you’re under 35, join EYEN. If you’re over 35, send this to someone who isn’t. Or better yet, help fund the next youth-led breakthrough.

Thanks, Energy Traders Europe, for sponsoring this episode!

Energ' Ethic goes out every other week.

Keep up to date with new episodes straight from your inbox

Reach out to Marine Cornelis via BlueSky or LinkedIn
Music: I Need You Here - Kamarius
Edition: Podcast Media Factory

Support Energ'Ethic on Patreon

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Hosted by Marine Cornelis, Energ’Ethic brings together policymakers, regulators, industry leaders, city practitioners, researchers, and civil society voices to examine what makes energy transitions succeed—or fail—in the real world.

Beyond technology and targets, the podcast focuses on trust, power, consumer rights, digitalisation, and energy justice. Each conversation connects policy and market design with lived experience, unpacking how decisions taken in boardrooms and institutions translate into everyday realities for people and communities.

Energ’Ethic is not about slogans or quick fixes. It is a space for rigorous, grounded conversations about resilience, legitimacy, and the social conditions required for lasting climate and energy strategies.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Description

This episode is about the people who got tired of waiting their turn — and built their own table instead.

💡 Not another talking shop: EYEN doesn’t just publish position papers or run events — it’s become a think-and-do tank, launching initiatives like:

The European Youth Energy Forum
The Young Energy Consumers Task Force
The Energy Transition Career Compass
And (soon) the first-ever survey on youth energy poverty in Europe

💬 “Every time a local youth organisation dies out, a connection between society and the energy transition disappears.”
💬 “We don’t just want to be included. We want to bring value.”

🎧 Listen now — and if you’re under 35, join EYEN. If you’re over 35, send this to someone who isn’t. Or better yet, help fund the next youth-led breakthrough.

Thanks, Energy Traders Europe, for sponsoring this episode!

Energ' Ethic goes out every other week.

Keep up to date with new episodes straight from your inbox

Reach out to Marine Cornelis via BlueSky or LinkedIn
Music: I Need You Here - Kamarius
Edition: Podcast Media Factory

Support Energ'Ethic on Patreon

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

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Description

This episode is about the people who got tired of waiting their turn — and built their own table instead.

💡 Not another talking shop: EYEN doesn’t just publish position papers or run events — it’s become a think-and-do tank, launching initiatives like:

The European Youth Energy Forum
The Young Energy Consumers Task Force
The Energy Transition Career Compass
And (soon) the first-ever survey on youth energy poverty in Europe

💬 “Every time a local youth organisation dies out, a connection between society and the energy transition disappears.”
💬 “We don’t just want to be included. We want to bring value.”

🎧 Listen now — and if you’re under 35, join EYEN. If you’re over 35, send this to someone who isn’t. Or better yet, help fund the next youth-led breakthrough.

Thanks, Energy Traders Europe, for sponsoring this episode!

Energ' Ethic goes out every other week.

Keep up to date with new episodes straight from your inbox

Reach out to Marine Cornelis via BlueSky or LinkedIn
Music: I Need You Here - Kamarius
Edition: Podcast Media Factory

Support Energ'Ethic on Patreon

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Description

This episode is about the people who got tired of waiting their turn — and built their own table instead.

💡 Not another talking shop: EYEN doesn’t just publish position papers or run events — it’s become a think-and-do tank, launching initiatives like:

The European Youth Energy Forum
The Young Energy Consumers Task Force
The Energy Transition Career Compass
And (soon) the first-ever survey on youth energy poverty in Europe

💬 “Every time a local youth organisation dies out, a connection between society and the energy transition disappears.”
💬 “We don’t just want to be included. We want to bring value.”

🎧 Listen now — and if you’re under 35, join EYEN. If you’re over 35, send this to someone who isn’t. Or better yet, help fund the next youth-led breakthrough.

Thanks, Energy Traders Europe, for sponsoring this episode!

Energ' Ethic goes out every other week.

Keep up to date with new episodes straight from your inbox

Reach out to Marine Cornelis via BlueSky or LinkedIn
Music: I Need You Here - Kamarius
Edition: Podcast Media Factory

Support Energ'Ethic on Patreon

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Energ’Ethic - Climate Justice and Energy Transition

Energ’Ethic is a podcast exploring the human, institutional, and ethical dimensions of the energy transition.

Listen to Energ’Ethic to:

Hear first-hand perspectives from those shaping energy and climate policy from the inside
Understand how governance, regulation, and technology affect consumers and communities
Explore energy and climate justice through practical, experience-based insights

Energ’Ethic speaks to an engaged audience of decision-makers and practitioners working at the intersection of policy, markets, cities, and society.

Organisations can partner with Energ’Ethic to support high-quality dialogue and reach a thoughtful, policy-literate audience committed to a fair and resilient energy transition.

Listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

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