The aim of the SERENE (Sustainable and Integrated Energy Systems in Local Communities) project is to develop and demonstrate sustainable, integrated, cost-effective and customer centric solutions for local communities. The idea is to integrate different energy system carriers and new renewable generation units in local communities, based on their social and technical status today, to meet their energy needs in the coming years. The users are involved in the changes of their local energy system and informed about different technical opportunities and business cases to make decisions about their participation. The researched energy systems involve different storage technologies (battery energy storages, heat storages, water storage-systems), demand response systems to enhance the flexibility of the systems (activating for instance electric vehicle charging stations and heat demand supplies), electric transportation systems like electrical vehicles or buses, heating system improvements using heat-pumps and integration of new renewable generation sources mainly in form of photo voltaic panels.