OCTOBER 24, 2023
The Beyond Fossil Fuels (BFF) initiative is a coalition-driven campaign to transform Europe’s power sector to 100% renewable energy by 2035. Launched by Kathrin Gutmann (Awardee 2021), who led the successful Europe Beyond Coal campaign to phase out coal power across the continent, BFF builds on proven strategies for accelerating energy transition. Through the Climate Breakthrough Award program, this strategic pivot comes as Europe grapples with multiple crises: soaring energy prices, security concerns stemming from Russian fossil fuel dependence, and escalating climate change impacts.
The Challenge
Europe’s energy landscape stands at a crossroads. The continent faces immediate pressures from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has exposed the vulnerabilities of fossil fuel dependence, while simultaneously confronting the longer-term threat of climate change. The decisions made in the next few years will largely determine whether Europe can achieve its climate ambitions and address its problematic energy consumption patterns. Current government and corporate responses have primarily focused on securing alternative gas sources and building new fossil fuel infrastructure, rather than accelerating the transition to renewables.
The Initiative
BFF’s approach is comprehensive and multi-faceted, building on the successful model that has already helped push much of Europe toward coal phase-outs. The initiative will operate across six strategic areas: targeting specific plants and mines, engaging corporations and financial institutions, organizing intermediate decision-makers like municipalities and universities, reforming energy market design, securing public finance for the transition, and influencing policy-making.
The campaign seeks ambitious benchmarks: achieving a coal-free Europe in power and heating by 2030, and establishing a fossil-free, renewables-based power system by 2035. Equally important, the BFF initiative isn’t positioning itself as a typical environmental campaign. Instead, it’s grounding its efforts in broader societal benefits: protecting public health, ensuring energy access, supporting vulnerable communities, and promoting democratic values. The initiative emphasizes local engagement and community-based solutions, recognizing that the energy transition must be both technically sound and socially equitable.
The Vision
The campaign’s team acknowledges that success will require rapid deployment of wind and solar power, accelerated implementation of energy-saving measures like home insulation, widespread electrification of heating systems, and significant upgrades to power grids and storage capabilities.
What sets BFF apart is its open-source nature and collaborative approach. Rather than operating in isolation, the initiative seeks to build momentum across diverse nations and locations, creating overlapping and reinforcing impacts throughout the power sector. It’s designed to work at multiple levels simultaneously, from local community engagement to national policy advocacy and international coordination.
The transformation BFF envisions isn’t just about changing energy sources—it’s about reshaping Europe’s relationship with energy consumption and production. As energy costs push many Europeans into potential poverty and climate impacts become more severe, BFF argues that this transition is not just environmentally necessary but economically and socially imperative.