Italy has an energy-efficiency problem, but the latest Eurostat data suggests it may also have an accessibility and communication issue. In 2025, just 2.6% of people in Italy reported living in a home that had undergone energy-efficiency improvements during the previous five years, compared with an EU average of 23.9%.
This figure does not measure the overall efficiency of the building stock, but rather the percentage of people who report having benefited from recent improvements. Nevertheless, it remains a significant indicator: in Italy, energy renovation is not reaching a sufficiently large share of the population.
Where Italy is falling short
Italy’s current approach has several weaknesses that need to be acknowledged openly.
Energy efficiency is still presented primarily as a technical or regulatory issue, rather than in terms of warmer homes, lower bills and protection from volatile energy prices. Information is also fragmented: citizens must navigate changing incentives, technical assessments, financing options and providers without a clear, trusted source of guidance.
Communication often assumes that awareness will lead to action, while overlooking practical concerns such as costs, realistic savings and who to trust. It also relies on generic messages for homeowners, tenants, condominium residents and vulnerable households, despite their different needs. Italy needs communication that reduces confusion, builds trust and guides each audience towards a realistic next step.
An economic and social issue, not just an environmental one
The debate on energy efficiency is often dominated by energy performance ratings, heating systems, technical standards and regulations. For households, however, it primarily means reducing energy bills, living in more comfortable homes, protecting themselves from energy-price volatility and increasing the value of their property.
Eurostat confirms the link between building quality and living conditions. Across the EU, 4.8% of people living in buildings constructed from 2011 onwards are unable to keep their homes adequately warm. This figure rises to 10.1% among those living in properties built in or before 1960. Households in newer homes are also less likely to fall behind on their energy bills.
A gap that penalises the most vulnerable
Energy-efficiency improvements remain deeply unequal. Across the EU, 25.6% of people not at risk of poverty or social exclusion have benefited from recent improvements, compared with 17.4% of vulnerable people – and just 1.5% in Italy. Homeowners and people living in houses are also significantly more likely to benefit than tenants and apartment residents.
Those most exposed to energy costs often have the least capacity to act because of limited finances, restricted access to credit, lack of decision-making power and complex condominium procedures. Italy’s delay therefore reflects economic, administrative and organisational barriers, not simply a lack of interest, making clear, accessible communication essential.
Providing information is not enough: we need to facilitate action
Educating people about energy efficiency does not simply mean advising them to switch off lights or turn down the heating. Good habits are useful, but they cannot replace the structural improvements needed to upgrade buildings and systems.
Effective communication should support people throughout the entire process: helping them understand where their home is losing energy, learn about the available solutions, assess costs and benefits, identify incentives and financing options, choose reliable providers and measure the results.
Communication therefore becomes an infrastructure connecting knowledge with action. It cannot replace public policies, incentives or technical expertise, but it can help make them understandable and genuinely accessible.
How to communicate energy efficiency more effectively
Communication should start with everyday problems – homes that are cold in winter, too hot in summer or expensive to run – and present technology as a practical solution. Technical data should be translated into clear benefits, such as lower consumption, greater comfort and reduced costs.
Transparency is essential. Initial investment, realistic savings, limitations and payback periods should be clearly explained, while simple tools such as guides, calculators and checklists can make incentives and procedures easier to navigate. Real-life examples can also make the benefits and challenges more tangible.
Finally, messages should be tailored to different audiences. Homeowners, tenants, building managers and vulnerable families face different barriers, so a one-size-fits-all approach is unlikely to help people take action.
A shared responsibility
Italy’s energy-efficiency gap will not be closed by technology or incentives alone. It will close when people can see what renovation means for their own lives, understand the choices available to them and trust the process enough to act.
That requires institutions, businesses, banks, building managers and the media to communicate with greater clarity, consistency and relevance. Communication cannot remove structural barriers such as cost or ownership, but it can stop confusion, complexity and mistrust from becoming barriers of their own.
Italy does not simply need more efficient buildings. It needs an energy-efficiency system that people can understand, navigate and trust. Technology creates the possibility; policy makes it viable; communication helps turn it into action.
Making the energy transition work means making it make sense to the people it affects. See how TEAM LEWIS works with energy organisations to turn complex issues into communication people can understand and use.
