Socio-economic opportunities and drivers on the way to a low-carbon society
Guildford and London | UK
View the Guildford programme here
View the London programme here
In 2011, the Academy took place in Guildford and London, UK, in close cooperation with the University of Surrey, an academic institution specialising in decarbonisation strategies. With an impressive number of research centres and projects in the field of low-carbon energy, the University hosted the Academy in their conference space and participants stayed overnight on campus.
Over five days, participants considered the different aspects of a low-carbon society. On Monday, the Academy kicked off by analysing the psychological drivers of consumer behaviour and evaluating lifestyles, consumption, and production patterns. A realistic view of a low-carbon society was presented in this context, delineating clearly where we are now and where we are trying to go. On Tuesday, the conference addressed policy instruments at international, EU, and national (UK) levels. Wednesday’s programme focussed on the energy dimension of a low-carbon society and presented participants with an overview of renewable energy, intermittency issues, and (smart) grids. On Thursday, the last day at the University of Surrey, participants investigated the decarbonisation of the transport sector, from electric vehicles (EV) to trains to biofuels, with a special case study on the EV project Autolib’ in Paris.
On Friday, the Academy moved from Guildford to London for the final conference, ‘Curbing climate change: the need for building new legal infrastructures’, in the capital’s historic legal district on Fleet Street. The IKEM Academy’s final seminar was hosted by the Freshfields law firm.