History of the organization
Atelier 21 grew out of the rich journey started by its founder Cédric Carles, a science and technology enthusiast and an expert in energy issues.
As early as 1999, after studying eco-design, Cédric moved to Switzerland, which was very advanced on the subject at the time, where he became a member of the board of ADER, the Association for the Development of Renewable Energies. That year, he took part in a campaign encouraging his canton to vote in favor of the “solar centime,” a popular initiative aimed at introducing a tax of 0.1 centime per kWh of energy consumed to fund solar power. On that occasion, he tried for the first time to connect turntables and a sound system to photovoltaic panels. Without knowing it, he had just laid the first stones of what would become the iconic: Solar Sound System. A sound system powered by solar and human energy that invites people to experiment with renewable energy…while partying! Cédric then had only one goal in mind: raise awareness of energy alternatives in a fun and relaxed way.
In 2001, he joined climatologist Martine Rebetez to take over the exhibition Energy and Climate, co-designed with the EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) laboratories. Initially planned for 15 days, they decided to extend the experience by turning the exhibition into a traveling installation and launched the project ITEX (ITinerant EXhibition), in collaboration with ADER. Inspired by “C’est pas Sorcier,” the exhibition took place in a truck running on agrofuels to go and meet citizens. This educational initiative was aimed at a very broad audience and sought to educate people about energy and environmental issues by offering activities, training sessions, and hands-on workshops around the theme of energy.
In 2004, eager to develop these different activities, Cédric founded Atelier2cé in Lausanne. It was a structure made up of artists, designers, and engineers aiming to promote eco-design through art and design. The workshop became involved in numerous research and education programs to make energy issues more accessible to the general public and to professionals. It was also within this workshop that Solar Sound System (3S) took its definitive form. It attracted many artists and DJs and brought together a wide audience, helping raise awareness of energy issues across all circles, from the most popular to the most institutional.
Building on these successes, Atelier 21 was created in late 2011 to respond to the enthusiasm generated by Solar Sound System and to develop the concept around the world. In 20 years, our sound systems have taken part in more than 1,000 activist or festive events, in urban settings or on remote sites (mountains, beaches, forests, etc.), and rely on a growing network of players from the educational and cultural sectors.
Today, we are launching Académie 21 with the ambition of becoming a certified training organization on energy issues through the lens of history, low-tech, and experimentation. Atelier 21 is leading several large-scale initiatives to continue its mission of innovation and public outreach around energy alternatives: the participatory research program Paleo-énergétique and its museum the Retrofutur Museum, the action-research program Energy Solidarity, and the launch of Regenbox, now a company… All with the same ambition: making the energy transition a collective and popular movement!
Learn more: here
