GICS 3.2 Co-Creating Inclusive and Lasting Change

At the Global Innovation Coop Summit, this workshop explored how artificial intelligence (AI) can accelerate the energy transition by optimizing renewable systems, reducing waste, and improving energy efficiency. Participants discussed how cooperatives can use AI to manage smart grids, strengthen local resilience, and support a regenerative approach that benefits both people and the planet.  AI is no longer a distant technology — it’s a tool we can shape to serve cooperative values. The challenge is ensuring that innovation remains ethical, inclusive, and community-driven as we move toward a sustainable future.  The question for all of us now is: how can cooperatives use AI to power the energy transition — without losing sight of our shared principles?

How can AI technologies help cooperatives optimize renewable energy, repair systems, and innovate toward more sustainable and resilient communities?

Here are some things to consider within the discussion:
Challenge:  What barriers — technological, financial, or cultural — limit cooperatives from adopting AI tools for environmental or energy-related innovation?
Opportunities:  What practical ways can AI strengthen efficiency, resource management, or predictive maintenance within cooperative systems?
Intercooperation and Innovation:  How might cooperatives collaborate across sectors or countries to share AI knowledge, datasets, and ethical frameworks for the energy transition?