Category: Energy
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From bridging communities as a guest researcher to exploring and redefining energy citizenship
Introducing Senja Laakso’s Research on Sustainable Practices and Energy Transitions. By Katharina Reindl. In January and February 2024, Senja Laakso from the Centre for Consumer Society Research, University of Helsinki, and Tampere University visited us at the IIIEE for six weeks. This is the first post of a two-part series presenting Senja and the interesting…
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The story of electricity and the grid – on its way to becoming a sustainable and smart grid?
By Katharina Reindl. Electricity, the grid and energy goals “The electrical grid goes practically everywhere. It reaches into your home, your bedroom, and climbs right up into the lamp next to your pillow. It’s there while you sleep, and it’s waiting for you in the morning. Taken in its entirety, the grid is a machine,…
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Unlocking the Power of Collective Action -The role of latent networks in mainstreaming solar PV practices
By Katharina Reindl. A new research article examines the role of latent networks in mainstreaming solar PV practices in Germany: ”From shadows to light: The role of latent networks in mainstreaming solar PV practices” is a new article my colleagues Eva Heiskanen, Salvatore Ruggiero and I wrote together. You can find the full article here.…
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8 Simple Tips to Save Energy
by Katharina Reindl, Anna-Riikka Kojonsaari and Daniela Lazoroska. Happy New Year everyone! We are in the middle of a severe energy crisis here in Europe. The pandemic and its consequences have continued to unfold globally and the Russian invasion of Ukraine has created a humanitarian crisis as well as an energy crisis. If you are…
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The elderly sage: learnings on aging and the energy transition in Sweden and Japan
By Daniela Lazoroska. In extension to the topic of our last blog, we want to continue talking about age and participation in energy communities. While researching energy communities and inclusion in Sweden, our informants told us that the average age of their members was around mid-fifties. More often than not, this was stated with a…
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More ‘Anders’ than women: inclusion and diversity in the energy sector in Sweden
By Daniela Lazoroska. Sweden scores relatively high on the World Economic Forum’s gender equality index ranking, and gender equality is deeply ingrained in the cultural narratives of Swedes. Nevertheless, the energy branch is illustrative of the long way there is to go for gender equality in employment, particularly in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)…
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Renewable Energy in Cities in a Global Flux
By Kes McCormick. We find ourselves in a period of global flux due to the pandemic, political and economic tensions in many parts of the world including growing inequality and injustice, and the immense climate and ecological crisis confronting humanity. A fundamental transformation in the face of these many challenges is a dramatic shift away…
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TIME to introduce an energy goal?
By Katharina Reindl. They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself. Andy Warhol In a previous post, I wrote about how energy measures are or are not included in the planning and design of three renovation projects of a municipal housing company. I talked about how energy was seen…
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PV installation and the barriers and enablers of property owners of non-residential buildings
By Katharina Reindl. As my fellow Austrian countryman, Arnold Schwarzenegger puts it: “The future is green energy, sustainability, renewable energy.” In Europe about 25% are non-residential buildings – think about it, this is a lot of roof space that could be used for PVs! Jenny Palm and I studied property owners of non-residential buildings to…