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Ladek-Zdroj in Poland is one of Europe's oldest spa towns. Until recently, however, it received regular complaints from visitors about its poor air quality. When Roman Kaczmarczyk was elected mayor in 2014, he decided that something had to change and set about establishing an energy community to run a solar farm in a field outside the town.
According to the mayor, the project has been a huge success: the town now has cleaner air, cheaper electricity and is well on its way to becoming independent of the national power supply. What's more, all municipal buildings in Ladek-Zdroj are now 100% powered by local green energy. Kaczmarczyk is convinced that the green energy transformation in Poland has just begun.