Relational work in collaborative energy renovation: Understanding the role of tradespeople as middle actors

Energy renovation policies have expanded rapidly, yet renovation rates remain below climate targets and policy outcomes remain uneven. One reason is that dominant policy approaches rely largely on techno-economic framings, paying insufficient attention to the relational conditions through which renovation projects are organised and implemented. To address this gap, this article adopts a relational perspective and examines how collaborative energy renovation is organised through the case of Assisted Self-Renovation (Auto-Rénovation Accompagnée, ARA), an emerging collaborative approach in France based on close cooperation between households and tradespeople.

Drawing on a mixed-methods study combining a survey of 220 building professionals and 30 semi-structured interviews, the findings identify four complementary dimensions of relational work through which tradespeople, as middle actors, organise collaboration with households: relational diagnosis, pedagogical work, relational and task selectivity, and continuous supervision. These practices are associated with stronger household engagement, positive perceptions of technical quality and safety, and greater access to ambitious energy renovation measures, particularly insulation interventions, with important implications for households facing energy vulnerability.

Beyond ARA itself, the article argues that collaborative renovation provides a diagnostic lens through which broader transformations shaping energy renovation become visible. While respondents consistently identify positive technical and social outcomes, the wider development of these practices remains constrained by institutional misalignments in insurance, liability and the recognition of relational work. The article concludes that scaling up ambitious and socially inclusive energy renovation requires not only technological innovation and financial incentives but also greater recognition and support for the relational work undertaken by tradespeople.