Stoked to have my, somewhat out there, concept for an interactive website about the energy transition selected in the ANU Engaged initiative (see Prof Schmidt’s announcement here for the full list).
This will invest in a 12 month collaboration with a team creative geniuses from the ANU School of Art & Design and the ANU Communications and Engagement office. Can’t wait!
New piece in The Conversation
Under the previous federal government, Australia’s approach to emissions reduction was narrow and technology-centred.
The new Labor government – elected on the promise of climate action – has the opportunity to move to a community-based approach. This should ensure any new infrastructure integrates with people’s lives, values, and aspirations.
Such an approach requires proponents and funding bodies (both government and private) to genuinely listen to communities’ needs – right from the early design stage.
If local circumstances are not considered, a trial can be plagued with problems.
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Check out this cool little feature on The Guardian Labs in which I discuss the role of strategies, like FACTS (a Framework for an Australia Clean Transport Strategy), in accelerating the pace of innovation and the decarbonisation transition, as well as steering the transitions to a better future.
In research commissioned by ARENA and the Distributed Energy Integration Program, we’ve analysed the gaps in knowledge and current activities around the integration of electric vehicles (of all sizes) into the electricity system.
The executive summary is below and the full report is available here.
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As life continues to return to the ANU campus we’re finally able to announce that we’re providing free electric vehicle charging – powered by the DERlab.
Vice Chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt said: “I see this as the first small step, or a precursor to having charging available more broadly on campus. I envision a set of EV parking spots will be rolled out across campus in the years to come so people can plug in and charge their EV while the sun is shining and the energy is cheap, rather than, like me, going home when the sun has set and plugging in.
“Here at ANU we are a community of 20,000 people, we have the opportunity to lead the way, implement our own knowledge and show the world how to do it. We will have to make some sacrifices to get ANU Below Zero by 2030 but our community is right behind it,” said Professor Schmidt.
Full story @ BSGIP website
We have a new paper published today in Energy Research & Social Science.
Pre-print is freely available below and the published paper is available at https://authors.elsevier.com/c/1ely67tZ6ZxQoB
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Late last year a book I contributed to was launched by former Australian Prime Minister, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull, who wrote the foreword for the book, and Vice-Chancellor of The Australian National University, Prof Brian Schmidt. The launch can be viewed on youtube below and purchased from Booktopia here.
If networks could charge for localised use of their service, all customers in areas with high PV and community-scale batteries would pay lower bills … with no cost to the network, research shows.
Is rooftop solar a problem in the suburbs? Apparently so, with rising PV exports prompting falls in feed-in tariffs, plans for export charges in Adelaide and deployment of community-scale batteries in many cities.
As the grid transitions away from coal, it seems as though rooftop solar is part of the solution and part of the problem at the same time. Is there a simple solution that could see all that excess solar energy shared equitably and leave customers better off?
Yes, there is. Or there could be, if networks were allowed more flexibility in how they charge for their services.
Full story in ecogeneration
We are looking for a PhD scholar to work as part of a multi-party project on cooling – and thereby saving – the Great Barrier Reef.
The PhD project will contribute to the development of clean energy systems that power the equipment that increases the thickness of marine clouds above the reef. These systems may feature solar photovoltaics, wind power, bio fuels, wave power, batteries and other technologies. The project will assess the technical, economic, and social feasibility of these technologies and design systems to meet the needs of the reef cooling applications.
The student will work closely with the Battery Storage and Grid Integration Program at ANU (www.bsgip.com), as well as researchers at Southern Cross University and the broader Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program (see https://gbrrestoration.org/program/cooling-and-shading/).
Full application details are here: https://cecs.anu.edu.au/research/student-research-projects/clean-energy-solutions-great-barrier-reef-phd-project-0
ABC TV’s Catalyst program was one of my favorite TV shows growing up, so it was a bit of a dream to get to be a part of the recent episode about the transformation of the electricity system.
The episode did a fantastic job, covering a huge range of the interesting developments underway across the system and the country, explaining the crucial facts and trends, and presenting everything in interesting, engaging and understandable ways.
So, I’d highly recommend giving watching here https://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/the-grid-powering-the-future/13491654
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