Earth Day this year lands in the middle of a fossil fuel crisis. Its theme – Our Power, Our Planet – couldn’t be more pertinent as we try to draw some inspiration from progress made so far, while grappling with a national and global energy emergency.

The scale and pace of renewable energy growth in the UK has been a genuine success story. UK wind and solar capacity have doubled in the last decade, and we are better off as a result. Renewable energy capacity built just from 2021-2026 alone has saved the UK an estimated £7 million per day since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran.

Looking ahead, the case for green investment is even clearer. The latest forecasts from the Climate Change Commission show a single fossil fuel price shock costs the UK more than the transition to net zero by 2050.

So how can we move faster on energy security? And what would a more ambitious and urgent investment drive in the UK look like?

I can’t pretend to have the full answer, but if I had to pick one aspect for government and funders to prioritise it would be this. Focus on communities.

Energy security is headline news ultimately because it is crucial for resilient, thriving communities. Equally, communities are fundamental to building energy security – hosting energy infrastructure, providing public support for long term policy commitments, developing local energy solutions often in the most challenging areas, and changing energy use.

There are two clear areas where a step up in investment and government support right now could help communities become more energy secure, while accelerating decarbonisation in a way that works for everyone.

Community energy

Giving communities a meaningful ownership stake in renewable energy infrastructure is arguably the most effective way to create the public buy-in needed to get consent for new renewable energy projects, while also fostering long-term stable conditions and lower risks for investors. It also helps protect communities from energy price shocks by generating stable, long-term revenues that communities, as owners, can use where they need it the most.

Kilbirnie in North Ayrshire is a good place to see what this looks like in practice. In March 2026, the Attix CIC turbine became Scotland's first community-owned development to operate commercially without long-term government subsidies. Funded by £5.6m in blended finance, combining investment from Community Energy Catalyst and Social Investment Scotland, the 2.5MW turbine now generates enough clean electricity to power more than 2,000 homes and cuts over 3,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year. Every pound of profit flows back into Radio City Association's programme of community development including an employment hub, sustainable transport, sports facilities and direct support for fuel poverty.

Community energy groups don’t have the same economies of scale as larger commercial operators. This means most community energy projects need a mix of some early-stage grant and flexible patient finance – ideally, for the sector to really grow, it would benefit from some basic market reforms to make it easier for community groups to build new projects and sell energy for a fair price locally. The prize, though, is well worth the extra work. Alongside de-risking for new projects, community energy has also been shown to generate 12 times the local economic value of commercial energy.

GB Energy's Local Power Plan sets out a vision for every community in the UK to benefit from and own a local energy project by 2030. It is a promising signal and if its ambitions can be fast-tracked over 2026, there are hundreds of community energy groups with strong track records ready to go, alongside growing interest from social investors.

Warm, green community buildings

Community and public buildings are a second, overlapping area where more investment could be transformative for local resilience and energy security. £16 billion in investment is needed just for schools to achieve net zero targets and address rising energy costs. Meanwhile more than 7,000 community buildings currently fall below basic minimum energy efficiency standards, putting organisations providing vital education, care and health support at real risk.

In response to the last energy crisis in 2022, the Energy Resilience Fund (ERF) was set up to provide a blend of grant and affordable loans to community buildings for rooftop solar, battery and other energy efficiency technologies. The ERF has grown as a partnership of 10 social investment organisations with support from Better Society Capital and the Access Foundation. It’s one example among several that are already tackling the energy challenge for our most important local services, but the scale and severity of the challenge requires a much bigger national response. The Warm Homes Plan promises £15 billion investment to lower energy bills and achieve clean power by 2030. Accelerating the Plan and fast tracking some targeted investment towards vulnerable community buildings would make a massive difference ahead of a challenging winter later this year.

This Earth Day, the challenge is clear and so is the opportunity. Local communities are not just affected by the energy transition; they are also uniquely positioned to lead it. Empowering them now, and backing them with the right funding, is one of the smartest investments the UK can make for long-term energy security.

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BSC's climate and energy strategy through to 2030 is designed to put communities at the heart of green growth. We invest directly while building the markets, structures and partnerships that allow others to invest with confidence. Read more about our strategy here.