June 30, 2015, by sustainablenottingham

Highlights from EU Sustainable Energy Week 2015

Anneke Love, Marketing and Web Officer in Business Engagement and Innovation Services, shares some of the highlights of the University’s EUSEW events.

Over 200 people attended a number of Energy Days hosted by The University of Nottingham this June, which contributed towards the success of EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) 2015.

EUSEW, an initiative of the European Commission, was set up to showcase activities dedicated to energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions. It is designed to spread best practices, inspire new ideas and build alliances to help meet the EU’s energy and climate goals. This is the fifth year running that the University has been involved in hosting energy related events as part of the wider EU Energy Week event.

670 Energy Day events were held Europe-wide as part of EUSEW 15, and The University of Nottingham is proud to have organised five of these successful events helping to promote a secure, clean and efficient energy future. The Energy Days acted as a platform to foster open debate about the Energy Union and its three pillars including: Energy Efficiency, Decarbonising the economy (with a focus on renewables), as well as Research (encompassing Innovation and Competitiveness).

The Energy Day events at the University, including a breakfast event organised by the Environmental Technology Centre, showcased the work around our £70m energy research portfolio. Themes were centred on the latest research into energy storage, hydrogen developments and the future of hydrogen infrastructure, as well as energy and carbon management at The University of Nottingham.

An interesting insight from one of the seminars is the fact that despite the recent rapid growth of the University (floor space has increased by 60%), energy consumption is still around 200,000 MWh per annum – on a par with consumption levels of 18 years ago.

There was also an exclusive opportunity to tour the BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ energy research facilities as part of the Energy Technologies Building Open Day, and to meet with small to medium sized businesses which are leading the way in sustainable energy technologies in the East Midlands.

As part of EUSEW 15, The Sustainability Research Network (SRN) hosted their second anniversary event titled ‘New links and future pathways: building careers in sustainability’ enabling postgraduates and early career researchers at the University to share their research and experiences in the field. Guest speakers from all over the country, including representatives from Coventry University, Royal Holloway, The Royal Society and the think tank, Gada, came to the event to discuss sustainability career paths and the work of University of Nottingham PhD alumni in academia and beyond.

Overall, the Energy Days at The University of Nottingham were a big success and have helped to shape Europe’s energy future. Thank you to everyone who played their part and to the enthusiasm of all who participated in EUSEW 2015.

For more information about EUSEW or how you can play your part in next year’s event, please visit the EUSEW website or contact Anneke Love.

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