The lived experience of energy poverty in Georgia


31 May 2021

This is project is funded by FPRN as part of the EPEC programme for early career 2020-21 round.

The project aims to explore the lived experience of energy poverty in Georgia by employing video ethnography to visually depict how energy poverty is manifested in daily lives, and how those who experience it find ways to cope. The project will visually depict the lived experience of energy poverty not only at home but also in “third spaces,” such as libraries, as well as in relation to transportation and working and studying conditions (especially given the need for teleworking and remote learning during the Covid pandemic). The project contributes to internalizing energy poverty research  by studying and documenting the reasons for and manifestations of energy poverty in a relatively underexplored geographical context and to  broadening the concept of energy poverty by providing evidence that in Georgia energy poverty is a year-round problem.

‘With this research grant I will be able to develop and conduct research about the lived experience of energy poverty in Georgia by using video ethnography methodology. I particularly appreciate this research as it gives me freedom to adjust my methodology given the COVID-19 pandemic realities and enables me to showcase the perspectives that would otherwise be unrecognized.’

‘The EPEC grant allowed me to explore the topic and geographic focus that I deeply care about and that may not always be at the center of the scholarly conversation. Most importantly, I enjoyed full support in choosing my methodological approach and even drastically changing it when the COVID-related restrictions did not allow me to travel to conduct the fieldwork. As a result, my current research is designed and conducted in close partnership with the study participants, making it even more exciting and interesting than I initially envisioned.’

Nino Antadze, University of Prince Edward Island
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Electricity pylons
Report to funder: The lived experience of energy poverty in Georgia (pdf)
Nino Antadze; Kety Gujaraidze

Nino and Kety provides a summary of the research including rationale, methodology, findings and implications.