Lessons from the PUSH-IT geothermal heat-storage project show why engagement works best as an ongoing, collaborative process—not simply a way to explain a technical project to the public.
Community engagement can shape how an underground energy project is understood, but project teams often lack the time, resources or experience to do it well. A webinar hosted by EAGE’s Special Interest Community on Geoscience Communication and Public Engagement explored these challenges through PUSH-IT, a Horizon Europe project piloting underground storage of heat in geothermal reservoirs.
That early commitment mattered. Project proposals can lock in locations, technical plans, budgets and timelines before local communities have a chance to influence them. Later, teams may struggle to adapt engagement to local circumstances, particularly when funding and staff time are limited. Rohse argued that engagement should be planned and resourced from the outset, with enough flexibility to respond as projects develop.
From informing to listening
Interviews and surveys with project staff found broad support for engagement, alongside uneven experience and confidence in carrying it out. Providing information was often the main objective. Some staff also worried that engagement could slow a project or increase opposition.
Community discussions revealed a broader expectation. Residents wanted clear information about both the benefits and risks, opportunities to ask questions, and evidence that their concerns were taken seriously. They valued engagement that allowed for dialogue and could inform project decisions, as well as continued communication during implementation.
Timing presents a challenge. Communities may want to be involved early enough to influence a project, while developers may feel they have too little detail to share. Rohse’s findings suggest that teams can explain what is known, what remains uncertain and which decisions are still open. They can then keep communicating as the project advances.
The presentation also emphasised the importance of local context. Existing projects and previous experiences with energy development can affect how a new proposal is received. Engagement therefore needs to account for the different roles people hold—as residents, community representatives, decision-makers or local organisations—and for the history of development in each place.
Making the underground tangible
Site visits were among the most frequently used and best-regarded engagement activities in PUSH-IT. Visits gave people a chance to see project operations, speak with technical staff and encounter elements of the work directly. Teams also used posters, exhibitions, educational activities and samples such as core material to help explain what happens below ground.
These approaches address a particular communication challenge: communities cannot directly see the reservoirs and geological structures on which underground energy projects depend. Rohse noted that visual and hands-on activities can help make subsurface processes more accessible, while creating space for questions and discussion.
PUSH-IT’s partners also developed an online engagement catalogue with practical formats and activities, including guidance on purpose, preparation, time requirements and intended audiences. The resource reflects collaboration between social scientists, geoscientists and project teams.
During the webinar’s discussion, Rohse distinguished public engagement from scientific transparency. Making data available and auditable is important for open science, but by itself does not ensure that residents or decision-makers can understand a project’s risks, benefits and uncertainties.
The wider lesson is organisational as well as communicative. Underground energy projects benefit when engagement is treated as part of project design and delivery, with social-science expertise working alongside technical teams. Consistent, honest communication can help build relationships with communities over time—even when outcomes remain uncertain.
More on PUSH-IT Consortium can be found here.
Images courtesy of PUSH-IT
