On 9 August 2013 the most populous US-state California with more than 37 million inhabitants stroke a new record: more than 27% of consumed electricity was generated by renewable energy sources. The goal of having renewable energy make up 33% of the power mix by 2020 is more ambitious than the European 20-20-20 targets and makes California a pioneer of sustainable climate and energy policy.

To guarantee power system stability and security is not only a technological challenge – more and more actors consider the conversion of our power system a social experiment based on new cooperative planning procedures. In 2007 – two years before RGI was founded – California had already established the Renewable Energy Transmission Initiative (RETI) that aimed for broad public participation of as many interest groups as possible. As coordinator of the RETI, David Olsen set new standards for cooperative procedures and transparent planning processes. Environmental and cost efficiency criteria formed the basis for the identification of grid corridors. The integrated planning approach considered both potential for efficiency enhancement and demand-side-management.

Inspired by this innovative process, other actors started to rethink their own roles: grid operators increasingly take on more responsibility beyond technological neutrality. The Renewables-Grid-Initiative (RGI) kindly invites you to be our guest at the 3rd European Grid Conference European American Grid Dialogue - How can American Innovation inspire European Grid Development? Cinquantenaire Museum (Royal Museum of Art and History), Brussels 4 December 2013, 3pm – 6.30pm Hosted by Sir Graham Watson MEP, Chairman of the Climate Parliament

More information, agenda and registration: http://bit.ly/1fqYBw1