WALKING WITH ENERGY
AIMS TO CONNECT PEOPLE
WITH ENERGY!
OUR PEOPLE
Walking with energy is led by a dynamic team from very different disciplines: social sciences, architecture, psychology, urban planning and environmental economics. Their shared interest lies in better understanding what people know about energy and what energy behaviours they might change if they knew more.
DR. AIMEE AMBROSE
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Ambrose is a Reader in Energy Policy in CRESR. Her research is primarily concerned with the key societal challenges of reducing domestic energy consumption and the carbon emissions associated with housing. Since June 2019, Dr. Ambrose has acted as Chief Academic Advisor to the International Energy Agency in relation to research into ‘hard to reach’ energy users. Currently, she is also a visiting researcher at the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics at Lund University in Sweden.
PROF. RICHARD BULL
Nottingham Trent University, UK
Prof. Bull has a keen interest in innovative participatory methods to enhance people’s engagement in environmental citizenship, reflecting the need to move beyond feedback. Much of his research focuses on energy use in non-domestic buildings and organisations. He has been a Principal Investigator and Co-investigator on a range of EPSRC, EU and JISC projects. In 2013, he was awarded the EAUC Green Gown Award for Green ICT.
DR. WILL EADSON
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Eadson is a Reader in Urban and Regional Sustainability Policy at CRESR. His research focuses on urban and regional sustainability and energy transitions, with a particular interest in the position of local economies that might be vulnerable or exposed to changes in the policy or economic value of carbon emissions. Currently, his academic work centres on two
themes: understanding economic geographies of the low-carbon transition (particularly implications for jobs and skills); and exploring diverse ideas about urban democracy within the context of sustainability transitions.
DR. TONY GORE
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Gore has extensive experience in urban and regional issues. Recent research projects include evaluating policy interventions in diverse areas such as: the UK industrial strategy; youth support in accessing the labour market; economic, community and social inclusion impacts of improving urban green space; and use of procurement agreements and transport innovations to enhance access to work and training opportunities for disadvantaged job seekers. He is an acknowledged expert on labour market disadvantage, economic development, policy integration and the geographies of governance.
PROF. JENNY PALM
Lund University, Sweden
Prof. Palm researches energy systems from social science perspectives, e.g. sociotechnical system, planning processes, urban governance, energy community, and technology diffusion and adoption. She has a particular interest in urban infrastructures such as district heating systems, the smart grid and industrial symbiosis as well as in urban planning, energy communities and prosumers.
DR. STEPHEN PARKES
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Parks has a keen interest in urban zones and transportation, specifically, sustainable transport, active travel, urban sustainability, economic geography and behavioural theory change. He is skilled in applying both quantitative and qualitative research methods in a variety of contexts.
DR. MARTIN THIRKETTLE
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Thirkettle’s research interests lie in the way people perceive visual information and how such information can then be used in cognitive mechanisms to produce behaviour. Much of his research focuses on cognitive behavioural neuroscience; he also teaches cognitive psychology and research methods.
CRESR = Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research, Sheffield Hallam University / EPSRC = Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (UK) /
JISC = Joint Information Systems Committee / EAUC = Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education / ICT = information and communication technologies
OUR AIM IS TO MAKE ENERGY LESS ‘INVISIBLE
With the end goal of engaging people in debates and decisions regarding energy production and consumption, WWE takes people ‘inside’ energy systems to see how they work and uses oral history techniques to ‘tap’ into personal experiences.
In turn, novel interactive elements take the project inside people’s minds, teasing out information on their knowledge and attitudes – before and after participating in an event.
In short, the project is a highly innovative, creative and low-cost way of investigating modern society’s relationship with energy, starting from the reality that we are completely dependent on something that is largely invisible. That creates a massive disconnect between our consumption and associated environmental consequences. It also tends to make us disengaged from decisions about how the energy we use is produced and delivered to us, in terms of modes of generation, types of energy and distribution systems.
We believe the methods underpinning this project will encourage participants to reduce energy consumption and boost their environmental citizenship. The model offers great scope for use in both social and commercial purposes.
Following a successful in-person pilot in the UK, the project moved online, creating more opportunity to explore, engage and ‘walk with energy!’
The project is a collaboration among colleagues from Sheffield Hallam and Nottingham Trent Universities (UK) and Lund University (Sweden). It is funded by the Swedish Energy Agency.
Creative content has been developed by The Energy Action Project (EnAct).
