Karl Ward

ETP’s role in the energy transition is akin to a broker. We work in the space between industry and academia, ensuring that the innovation found in Scottish Universities makes its way into industry. We want to enhance collaboration between universities and industry in Scotland. Learn more about the work that ETP does in securing a renewable energy transition in Scotland. https://lnkd.in/eKHAmtfi #ETPScotland #EnergyTransition #EnergyInnovation

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Innovate UK, Opportunity North East Limited and University of Aberdeen are inviting applications to the ICURe Discover North East Scotland programme. This eight-week programme will enable you to explore the commercial potential of your research and innovation and is open to researchers, clinicians and early stage start-ups. Applications are encouraged from individuals and teams within the life sciences and digital sectors and innovation-driven technologies. The programme focus is on market awareness and customer discovery to enable participants to understand whether there is a commercial demand for their science or technology. Past participants have reported that having eight weeks of support and time for customer discovery significantly transformed their perspective on their innovation. Programme participants will work in teams to refine their commercial proposal. The programme is delivered via a one-day in-person and one-day virtual bootcamp followed by eight weeks of early-stage market engagement and customer discovery (total eight weeks part-time). What's included?  - £2,500 support for testing assumptions and market discovery activities  - Two-day training boot camp with part-time market discovery spanning eight-weeks  - Gather market feedback that indicates the next steps, such as entering ICURe - Explore with a team - Access to our team of experts who will proactively connect you to our network of entrepreneurs, investors and funders  - Outline the commercial viability using tools such as the Business Model Canvas (BMC) - Develop an understanding of existing market offerings and the competitive landscape for your sector Applications close on Friday 19th April, with the programme starting on Wednesday 8th May. https://lnkd.in/e9VnXWrj

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The latest #ScienceEducationTracker from EngineeringUK, The Royal Society and Wellcome Trust’s great work aligns with what we’re seeing at Tech She Can 👏 Our recent research with Templeton and Partners - Tech Recruitment looked at similar attitudes to, and experience of, #STEMeducation and #careers, but with a focus on *primary* age. It shows what primary teachers urgently need: https://lnkd.in/e85J_pSZ 👀 Our report: https://hubs.li/Q02j0Glj0 👉 75% of primary teachers believe that careers education is important in primary schools, but only half have access to quality and *inclusive* careers education and only 15% feel the available experiences are sufficient, leaving many without *diverse* career insights 👉 c70% of primary school teachers believe that gender stereotypes around STEM start *before* the age of 11; 1 in 5 teachers are confident that stereotyping starts at *pre-school* age  👉 Although girls are reported by their teachers to enjoy STEM subjects more than boys, girls are almost 70% less likely to aspire to a STEM career 👉 c60% of teachers believe a trained volunteer - such as a #TechWeCan Champion, a real-life, relatable industry role model - visiting a school to deliver lessons would be most effective to inspire children. At #TechSheCan our experiences and learning resources start young - from age 5 to +16yrs - because we know STEM gender stereotypes set in early. They're designed by teachers, for teachers. They're inclusive, girl-friendly. For all. The Tracker calls for:  📢 ’'Government... to ensure the teaching of science, maths and computer science is more engaging for all students and builds confidence in the subjects, particularly for girls…’’; 📢 ‘’Extra-curricular activities boost young people’s interest in continuing their STEM education. Half of students who visited a business said they were inspired to continue with STEM subjects and 45% of those who had a talk at school from someone working in STEM said the same...’; 📢 ''[industry]... also needs to step-up and help young people see the range of opportunities for them...'' We have the solutions. We bring roles to life, making tech roles real and current. We connect childrens' passions to STEM and show that science & tech is inherently creative. And we’re doing it *with* industry (+250 members across +40 sectors): literally #openingdoors, taking children into our partners’ workplaces for immersive Career Insights. Many of the schools we work with would not otherwise have #access to these experiences. We see the realities of the education sector on the ground, and the '#AspirationGap’ in classrooms across the UK, every day. https://lnkd.in/eQejXD4X With Sheridan Ash MBE, Robyn Howard, Becky Patel, Millie Stacey #GenderEquality #WiT #STEMEducation #socialmobility

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🌱🌟 Exciting News! 🌟🌱 I am delighted to share that our team at Northumbria University Andrew Suggitt Natasha Johnson have co-designed a renewable energy toolkit aimed at supporting North East rural communities in the transition to net zero🌍 Working with local authorities and industry experts, we have developed a toolkit tailored for local scale renewable energy projects in rural North East England. This toolkit addresses the unique energy needs of our region, providing practical advice on electricity generation, heat, energy efficiency, and energy storage. From solar panels to wind turbines, heat pumps to hydropower, our toolkit covers the logistics, finance, and planning considerations necessary to make these projects a reality. By building a diverse energy supply, we aim to support the UK in achieving its net zero target by 2050. Heidi Mottram CBE is Co-chair of Net Zero North East England, a new collaboration between local government, business, education, the public sector and civil society to drive a comprehensive regional approach to tackling the climate emergency. She said: “The challenge of developing local scale renewable energy solutions can be daunting, however this toolkit is a welcome source of support and guidance. By making information accessible, the toolkit eases the path for all, fostering a collective effort towards a sustainable and energy efficient future.” This toolkit is a product of collaborative efforts and workshops at Northumbria University, and it is designed to be a valuable resource for individuals and communities embarking on their renewable energy journey🌱 🔗 Discover more and access the toolkit from the press release below! #NetZero #RenewableEnergy #Sustainability #GreenEnergy #EnergyEfficiency #ClimateAction #CleanEnergy #SustainableFuture #RuralCommunities

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We're going on tour! if you'd like to join our SME masterclass this year, see below 👇

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The education and training supply chain are key on a number of fronts to industrial decarbonisation.

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Community Centric Planning of Energy Infrastructure With the announcement of the UK National Energy System Operator, its very important that communities and stakeholders engage in the regional net zero planning conversation. And given the establishment of the Head of Mission Control, this is a significant opportunity for us to design the technical, market and policy pathways, for equitable and affordable decarbonisation. Learning from whole system demonstrators, such as ReFLEX Orkney is integral to this conversation. This open access paper is available via this link: https://lnkd.in/e5iB89_K Equally, we need to explore the scalability and transferability of new energy transactive models for communities: https://lnkd.in/e8_whDcW https://lnkd.in/eXDhafbD Glasgow Centre for Sustainable Energy, James Watt School of Engineering, University of Glasgow

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Enjoyed the COP29 UK Pavilion Roundtable on mission driven energy policy led by Chris Stark, the UK’s new head of Mission Control for Clean Power. Strong commitment to achieving clean power system in the uk by 2030 and lower prices. Project development time, and importantly planning and consenting, needs to be accelerated to achieve those in the pipeline as well as new projects to be leased. But this all needs research and innovation to speed up consenting using new technology and understanding in data collection and analysis. Research and innovation is also needed for the new floating offshore wind farms of the future. Opening up new frontiers for offshore wind, such as the Celtic Sea needs a strategic systems thinking approach to achieve benefits for local communities and biodiversity as well as decarbonisation and clean power for the UK.University of Plymouth Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Hub

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“Opportunities for practical science are particularly important for less engaged students but only 26% of GCSE students are doing hands-on practical work at least fortnightly, down from 44% in 2016, and interest in science has declined - this is perhaps unsurprising given how much we know students like practical work.” Alarming new report by EngineeringUK; clearly not enough has been done in the past decade to overcome these barriers! And it begs this question how are we going to compete economically on the world stage with these worrying trends?

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I strongly believe that leading for sustainability means breaking down the silos between climate scientists and future CEOs so they can understand each other’s language and combine their knowledge and perspectives.    Building sustainable organisations requires technical skills, but also management and leadership skills. You need to know how to measure a carbon footprint, but you also need to be able to drive a programme of change to reduce it.   So I am looking forward to contributing to this summer school with our natural and social scientists, that's ideal for those who need a more in-depth understanding of the environmental risks facing their organisation, and how to manage their finances and people to ensure resilient organisations.

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An excellent oppertunity to be part of a promising project in environmental sciences.

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Interested in learning more about hydrogen and how it can contributed to our net zero targets for a sustainable future? We are running a free online seminar tomorrow at lunch time (11:00 BST). Phil Longhurst, Professor of Environment and Energy Technology at Cranfield University, will be addressing "the Importance of Hydrogen in Achieving Net Zero". Register here: https://lnkd.in/ein7zUmv #Cranfield #MSc #Hydrogen #HydrogenEconomy #NetZero #SustainableEnergy #postgraduatestudy

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I am pleased to have contributed to a new report that has been published today. The report was commissioned by DESNZ via the Off-takers Working Group of the Hydrogen Delivery Council (HDC) and reveals that hydrogen internal combustion engines (H2ICE) could be a leading solution to decarbonise critical off-road sectors (construction, agriculture, mining, forestry etc.) that rely on non-road mobile machinery (NRMM). The report highlights the potential GHG savings (>99.9%) and associated reductions in NOx (>99%) and particulates (>98%). It also examines the practicalities and impact of implementing H2ICE, showing that it may be the least inflationary approach due to its ability to leverage existing manufacturing capability, supply chains and skills. In particular I led the Performance and Efficiency section of the report which can be read and downloaded via the link below, concluding that • H2ICE can match or surpass the efficiency and performance of diesel engines, depending on the hydrogen injection and engine boosting technologies used. H2ICE supports hydrogen infrastructure investment and provides a viable, immediate decarbonisation option for NRMM by enabling a swift switch to hydrogen fuel, driving demand and expanding the hydrogen user base. Read the full report here https://lnkd.in/eyYvByXj and click on "Powering Growth"

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And for those of you wanting to know what we at the Leicester Centre for Phage Research have been up to in our first year here is a wee summary: https://lnkd.in/eZRDX6NM

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It was lovely to listen to Professor Dawn Bonfield MBE FREng on @bbcradio4 this morning. Advocating General Science A’level as key to unlock students locked out single science A’levels due to schools only enabled them to complete single or double science GCSE. Our educational system does not enable growth mindset, particular summer born children who often develop later in particular in science. Compound this with asking year 9, 12-13 year olds to choose GCSEs, we wipe out generation potential scientific talent! Worse Computer Science is not even listed under science GCSEs it is listed under often under fourth last column optional GCSEs; Design and Technology, Food Technology, or Computer Science.

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Only 3 days to go before applications close for this post.

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The future of UK higher education lies in collaboration. Our report with Jisc which examines how universities can leverage shared digital solutions for long-term sustainability and resilience is out now and available for download: https://lnkd.in/drm6mbmj

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