One of the important areas of the energy transformation is the citizens involvement in the energy production process. This is a prerequisite for maintaining the security of supply and price stabilization. In order for all citizens to have equal opportunities to use green energy, regardless of financial and housing opportunities, energy cooperatives are established in many countries. In Poland, the first renewable energy cooperatives emerged in 2021 but, unfortunately, their role in the energy transformation process will be rather limited in the near future. This is mainly due to the numerous legal, economic and social barriers that hinder their creation. This article adopts the hypothesis that there are too many barriers in Poland that discourage the creation of energy cooperatives or other forms of collective prosumption. The main obstacle is the limitations of installed power, coerced by the poor condition of the network infrastructure. The aim of the article is to answer the question of whether, given the current legal and economic conditions, a large-scale development of energy cooperatives is possible in Poland, or will the existing barriers make this development limited and not contribute to the country’s energy transformation? To answer this question, primary and secondary sources were used. Primary research relied on interviews in all cooperatives operating in Poland. Based on the literature on the subject, reference was made to the experiences of other EU countries. The research shows that there are strong economic, legal and mental barriers to the development of cooperatives in Poland. Overcoming them requires changes in the law, in the energy policy including decentralization of the energy market and increased public confidence in collective forms of prosumption.

This article focuses on the role of local government in energy transition. The aim of this article is to answer the question of whether local government authorities undertake actions aimed at the energy transformation of the region. This article is based on both literature studies and independent research. The empirical research was carried out in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, located in Southwestern Poland. This region was chosen because it experienced the negative effects of economic transformation (liquidation of the Lower Silesian Coal Basin). Two hypotheses (H1 and H2) were adopted in the article. H1 assumes that in Polish conditions, bottom-up energy transformation requires the involvement of local authorities, and they should act as both initiators and shareholders of energy cooperatives. According to H2, local authorities participate in the energy transition to a limited extent. According to the conducted surveys, there has been no investment in wind farms, hydroelectric power plants or biogas plants. Communes are not interested in large, capital-intensive investments, limiting themselves to local actions with a small spatial range and small economic significance, although they are aware of the advantages of RES.

Katarzyna Marak's chapter focuses on the manner in which performative play-paratextual Let's Play videos-can contribute to a better understanding of digital games in scholarly research and attempts at close reading of the given game text. Using selected examples, the paper demonstrates how a scholar, using Let's Plays, can expand their knowledge concerning possible gameplay experiences of other players, as well as explore the relevant cultural and linguistic limitations of the analyzed game.

The article discusses selected aspects of the 2020 game Tell Me Why, focusing on particular gameplay mechanics pertaining to player choices and the manner in which they influence player emotions, as well as on the representation of trans experience in the game. The authors draw both on affect theory and on approaches derived from game studies concerning the presence of emotions in gameplay. In the final part of the text, trans representation in Tell Me Why is analysed and juxtaposed with the readings typically found in the game’s reviews.

Thanatomorphose and Contracted: Feminine body and sexuality in horror and the horror of feminine body and sexualityThe paper juxtaposes two films — Thanatomorphose directed by Éric Falardeau 2012 and Contracted directed by Eric England 2013 — in order to illustrate how both use similar themes of rot, disfigurement and decay of the body to paint different images of the female body and its aesthetic and functional value. Through the use of close reading, the analysis focuses on the manner in which the aforementioned themes in the discussed film texts are expressed within the boundaries of horror discourse to emphasize issues such as abuse, objectification and self-harm.