The Transition Point pilot project is an initiative of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Portugal. It was implemented in the district of Setúbal, near Lisbon, between 2022 and 2023, in partnership with three other Portuguese entities: the Energy and Environment Agency of Arrábida (ENA), FCT- NOVA University of Lisbon’s Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research (CENSE) and the Association of Energy and Environment Agencies (RNAE).

Operating from a reused shipping container, Transition Point is a ‘one-stop shop’ that offers services to local populations, including advice on electricity and gas, information and support for home energy efficiency, and free energy assessments.

Mobile ‘one-stop shops’ – bringing advice to the heart of communities under one roof – can improve living conditions for vulnerable households, increase their resilience, and underpin a just energy transition which leaves no one behind as we all adapt to climate change. A pilot project, Transition Point, has modelled an innovative local response to alleviating energy poverty – from problem diagnosis and solution design to direct citizen support and community engagement.

It shows that:

• Vulnerable households require tailor-made engagement and support; one-stop shops can frame this effectively through early multidisciplinary collaboration and continuing close partnership with local authorities and social support institutions.
• Robust and varied data collection allows projects to fine-tune support in real-time in response to what local people need.
• A well-aligned local action framework has impact, but vulnerable households may be unable to implement advice without considerable and stable financial support.
• One-stop shops can act as a bridge between (sometimes complex) financial support programmes and vulnerable individuals.

The pilot’s experience provides valuable pointers for advice projects working with hard-to-reach or vulnerable communities on energy issues.