role of community–private sector partnerships in the diffusion of environmental innovation: renewable energy in Southern Israel.

This article systematically examines the diverse roles local communities play in promoting renewable energy (RE) through community–private sector partnerships (CPPs) in rural areas of Israel’s southern periphery. Contrary to the common dichotomous view of communities as either passive or active, the study identifies multiple community roles—including financing, ownership, knowledge contribution, employment, energy consumption, and most prevalently, leasing natural resources—and analyzes how these roles overlap and vary. Using a large-scale survey of 86 solar photovoltaic projects across 64 communities, the research finds that physical endowments (such as land size and facility capacity) and population size more strongly predict community involvement than socioeconomic status, experience, or project initiation. The study also assesses the balance of risks and gains for communities, revealing that most communities assume low risks while potentially enjoying high gains, often due to their control over land resources and supportive regulatory frameworks. These findings highlight the heterogeneity of local community engagement in eco-innovation diffusion and underscore the importance of tailored policies to enhance community participation in renewable energy transitions.