DECODE

DECODE addresses the urgent challenge of making decentralized energy systems not only technologically viable but also economically and socially inclusive. While tech innovations such as IoT smart meters and decentralized renewables are rapidly advancing, they often evolve in silos: disconnected from local governance and the broader political economy of finance. A key constraint is the persistence of centralized monetary systems, which concentrate wealth and decision-making in financial hubs. As a result, peripheral municipalities experience capital outflows: value generated locally is siphoned elsewhere rather than reinvested locally. This dynamic undermines the viability of energy communities by limiting their ability to recirculate value and sustain long-term, citizen-led transitions. DECODE’s central research question asks: How can tokenized local monetary systems be designed to align energy behaviors with circular and regenerative practices? Through the co-development of digital, purpose-specific local currencies, the project explores how socio-environmental values can be structurally embedded in community-scale financial systems and Positive Energy Districts.