Increasing the Social Performance of Renewable Energy Projects for Communities in Mexico. Applying the capabilities approach to place communities at the center of the energy transition

While the expansion of the renewable energy sector in developing countries like Mexico is paramount and needs to scale up to contribute to the targets of the Paris Climate agreement by decarbonizing energy systems, this process must not leave local communities behind and prevent them from achieving well-being. While social and economic co-benefits of renewable energy, such as employment opportunities and cost savings, have been identified for Mexico, the ways in which these opportunities will materialize for communities is dependent on an appropriate enabling policy environment. Thus, policy makers need to advance solutions that allow the growth of the renewable energy sector together with positive Social Performance, namely solutions that place the needs of current and future generations at the heart of renewable energy projects.