A new national Energy Demand Research Centre will undertake investigations into reducing energy emissions, led by an interdisciplinary team of UK researchers including the School of Social and Political Science (SPS)’s Dr Faye Wade.
SPS academic involved in new Energy Demand Research Centre aimed at driving net-zero energy sector
The centre will build an evidence base for understanding consumer behaviour, assessing the impact of socio-technical energy demand reduction measures, and research mechanisms to improve energy efficiency. It will investigate how domestic, industrial and transport energy demand reduction can be delivered on a local and national level across the UK, with the aim of supporting the country’s legal requirement to become a Net Zero Society by 2050.
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has awarded £15million to fund the project, after a recent Climate Change Committee report highlighted the lack of progress with climate goals, and noted that the UK is unlikely to hit 2030 emission targets. The recent increase in energy prices has also demonstrated the need for more research in the area.
The centre is based at the universities of Sussex and Newcastle, with 10 additional universities - including The University of Edinburgh - acting as partners. The research will be separated into five themes, each led by a different investigator and focusing on a different objective, with the overarching goal to inform and inspire energy demand reductions.
Dr Wade, a Chancellor’s Fellow based within Sociology at SPS, is part of the ‘Place’ research theme, which aims ‘to build a new evidence base for place-based approaches and policy making which provides actionable insights, tools and processes to enable an acceleration of the Net Zero transition.’ Here, Dr Wade will be leading projects on how community leaders might also be (un)intentional energy advisors through their everyday conversations, and how young people perceive work in the low carbon skills sector.
The centre also has a series of Transition Challenge areas, which have been identified as a mechanism for delivering and communicating evidence-based actionable solutions for net zero. Dr Wade will be leading a Transition Challenge on Realising Net Zero through green jobs and skills.
The official launch of the centre will take place this autumn.
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