From 26 to 28 May 2025, the CIRCUS project partners gathered in Belgium for a three-day meeting hosted by lead partner Landelijke Gilden and co-host Boerenbond.
This partner meeting marked a significant milestone in the CIRCUS journey: the first live testing of WattWorks, the fourth and final tool in the CIRCUS methodology.
WattWorks is a participatory card game designed to help local groups talk, reflect
and take action on energy in their village or region. Built around prompts, questions
and playful challenges, the tool aims to make complex energy topics more tangible and accessible, especially for communities just starting their journey toward shared energy initiatives.
Developed by Landelijke Gilden, WattWorks complements the three existing CIRCUS tools: the Energy Profiling Tool, GIS Tool, and Business Tool, and offers a low-threshold way for local actors to engage with the broader themes of the CIRCUS methodology: energy transition, spatial transformation and social innovation.
Co-creation in Practice
Throughout the meeting, partners worked in rotating small groups to test different parts of the card game. This approach created space for honest feedback, dynamic interaction and shared learning. Based on the insights gathered, the tool will now be finetuned by each partner organisation to fit their national context, with the aim of launching it in 30 co-pilot communities this autumn.
Throughout the meeting, partners worked in rotating small groups to test different parts of the card game. This approach created space for honest feedback, dynamic interaction and shared learning. Based on the insights gathered, the tool will now be finetuned
by each partner organisation to fit their national context, with the aim of launching it
in 30 co-pilot communities this autumn.
Beyond the tool testing, the meeting also provided an opportunity for deeper reflection on the overall methodology and upcoming implementation. Representatives from Interreg North-West Europe attended part of the meeting, offering valuable input
and strengthening the connection between project execution and programme vision.
“CIRCUS is not just about developing tools. It's about enabling communities,” says Marieke De Boe, participation expert at Landelijke Gilden. “This meeting brought us one step closer to doing exactly that.”
What's Next?
With the final round of improvements underway, WattWorks will soon be ready for local use. In the coming months, CIRCUS partners will support municipalities, citizen groups and rural actors across NWE to apply the full CIRCUS toolkit in their community, combining technical insights with participatory engagement.
The Belgian partner meeting clearly showed the strength of international collaboration in shaping effective and context-sensitive tools for local energy transitions. As CIRCUS moves into its pilot phase, the groundwork laid in Belgium will serve as a foundation for impact across the NWE region.
