Good to know

PHD Seminar: Global Transitions Local Actions.

Methods and strategies to adress climate change and energy transition

We are pleased to announce that next Tuesday 12 November the PHD SEMINAR will take place virtually. Pre-registration is required and attendance certification will be provided

Description:
The Seminar aims to transfer knowledge on applied methodologies and strategies being implemented to address two of the major contemporary environmental and social challenges: climate change and energy transition. It seeks to present research lines, strategies, theoretical framework, and methodologies from various research projects in European and Latin American contexts, all oriented toward the creation of more sustainable and equitable territories.


This is the link for registration: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScCDUMQ2AQE2Zkjj_dT4Vc8kZ0keVDZgC2ucA2lmj0wDT_txQ/viewform

This is the link to the meeting: https://bit.ly/transiciones-globales

SHIFT Internal Seminars

Poster of the session

On 10 October, at 11am, we will have the next session of the SHIFT Internal Seminars, which will be held in a hybrid format (ICS Room 1 and via Zoom).

It will feature the following presentations of the PEARLS project:

– Sara Favargiotti : University of Trento, Italy.

Energy Landscapes. Designing transitions”

– Ricardo Iglesias: Pablo de Olavide University, Seville, Italy

The social dimension of heat exposure. An approach to environmental justice from Spain (Europe’s hottest border).

If you are interested, please write an email to Coord. Ana Delicado and she will send you the link.

Final Meeting PEARLS Project

Project Plenary Forum in Syracuse, Italy

PEARLS‘ attendance team

The Project Plenary Forum (PPF) of the European Project PEARLS has taken place in Syracuse on 7th and 8th September thanks to the organisation by University of Seville and Ethics4Growth.

During this PPF the leaders for the different Work Packages presented and commented the results, sharing the analysis of their work with the attendants. Also, some secondees shared their experiences during the project and the work they have been doing throughout the last years to achieve positive results in their secondments.

Due to inclement weather it was not possible to carry out this activity, so the Mayor of Ferla intervened in the seminar with a Case Study which helped a lot to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, the acquisition of new competences and the professional development of the research and innovation staff members. All in all, an interesting example of good practice for all attendees.

The implementation of the project through secondments is the nucleus of this Action. Knowledge exchange in addition to the personal experience it has afforded. The opportunity to analyse in person the impact of renewable energies in the case studies has enabled regional differences to be incorporated into the analysis.

After more than five years of intensive collaboration PEARLS has brought together a great team that has been able to contribute to all areas of the project. We are pleased with the work done and the results obtained. We are committed to continue working until the end of the project and really looking forward to further cooperation in the future.

Project Plenary Forum (PPF) in Syracuse, Italy

Palazzo Beneventano where the PPF takes place

Today the Project Plenary Forum begins in Syracuse, the company Ethic 4 Growth in collaboration with the University of Seville have a co-organized a meeting in Syracuse, on the ionian coast of Sicily. This activity presents the results of the research carried out in the different work packages.

In addition, the visit to the Ferla Energy Community serves the participants to share the results and their experience. Also, cultural spaces of the city of Ortygia, where the role of energy among heritage can be analised which is important in this activity to deepen the field work.

You can find the program here

Spring School in Paros Island, Greece

Paros Spring School participants

Between 11th and 12th of May 2023, the company GeosystemsHellas S.A. in collaboration with the University of Seville have a co-organized a Spring School in Parikia, on the Greek island of Paros. During this activity, the results of the investigations carried out during the secondments hosted by said company from Trento and Huelva have been presented.

All of them have taken wind energy installations on the island as a case study, and in particular the project of a new wind park in Paros island. The main objective was to verify the results in situ in a comparative way in relation to their level of impact and to confirm the validity of the arguments that have led to the suspension of the project.

Empowering the energy transition energy cooperatives and energy communities

Ana Rita Antunes, Executive Coordinator of Coopernico, in Thessaloniki promoting this Lecture about Energy Cooperatives in Europe

Lecture about Energy Cooperatives in Europe at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

Our partner Ana introduced Coopernico to the audience at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. As a branch of her expertise, she has introduced concepts about the energy cooperative movement across Europe within the concept of energy democracy. As REScoop.eu member, the aim of the organization is to represent the voice of citizens, providing services for the European REScoops or facilizing international exchanges and cooperating between energy cooperatives. Furthermore, promoting a model based on cooperation as Energy Democracy has, it is important for us because it has a main idea like the objectives of PEARLS project.

By 2050, around 45% of renewable energy production could be in the hands of citizens, about a quarter of which could come through participation in a cooperative. Energy communities create social cohesion and spaces to educate people on issues around energy and democracy, triggering behavioral change and energy savings through a deeper and more conscious involvement within the energy system.

The experience of Pearls presented at the One Health seminar of the University of Bologna

Prof. Bruno Zanon on “One Health” Seminar in Bologna, November 2022

The approach and objectives of the H2020-MSCA-RISE PEARLS Project “Planning and Engagement Arenas for Renewable energy Landscapes” were illustrated during the “One Health” seminar, organised by the University of Bologna in Castello di Bertinoro, on November 25, 2022.

The seminar involved young physicians, healthcare professionals and other technicians interested in the fundamentals of health and well-being in the perspective of sustainable development.

Bruno Zanon illustrated the issues relating to the integration of Renewable energy technologies into the landscape to the young participants. The emphasis was placed on the emerging conflicts between the growing production of energy from renewable sources – which harvest low-gradient energy on large surfaces – and the need to preserve the quality of the landscape.

How to interact with people to better understand their perception of the inclusion of renewable energy technologies in the landscape is one of the questions addressed by the Pearls project. Ambra Barbini and Chiara Chioni addressed the methods and practice of using a questionnaire to interact with the inhabitants of sensitive landscapes in Greece involved in different energy production projects providing the first results of their field work.

SPSP and the Israel Society of Ecology and Environmental Sciences in the media about international energy politicy situation

Image by mdstyle from Pixabay

In the past year, SP Interface has published a few critical reports against the Israeli government policy to promote more deep sea natural gas explorations. Their main arguments are that this policy is contradictory for greenhouse gases emissions reduction efforts. Also, if more deep sea natural gas fields will be found, the natural gas will be available only by the end of this decade, when natural gas demand is expected to dwindle. Therefore, new expensive deep sea natural gas explorations makes no economical sense and will probable turn into stranded assets. SP Interface therefore call for the end of governmental natural gas subsidies and investments.

SP Interface pointed already in the fall of 2021, that the European dependency on Russian fossil fuels prevents a unified and strong opposition to the Russian aggression in Ukraine and elsewhere. And, that as long as democratic countries rely on energy (and other crucial commodities) import from autocratic regimes, they are subject to geopolitical manipulations and can’t fully implement democratic values in their foreign affairs. Moreover, as proven again during 2022, this dependency on imported fossil fuels is a critical threat to energy resiliency.

Also, the populist divergence from nuclear energy in the 1980s and 1990s, that was based on unfounded and exaggerated fears and not on data and facts, has deepened the fossil fuels addiction, and brought us to these energy, geopolitical, humanitarian, food, refugees and climate crises. This emphasizes the need to properly and thoroughly promote public acceptance of renewables and participation in their deployment.

Energy sectors based on local energy production such as renewables, energy storage and nuclear- mitigate climate change, and also free

adverse autocratic regimes influences. Energy policy must work on a set of factors such as cost, modularity, resilience, energy security, economic sustainability, environmental implications, landscape changes, geopolitical implications and population quality of life.

SP Interface, together with the Israeli Society for Ecology and Environmental Sciences, published these views also in newspapers and social media.

PEARLS live

The reactivation of the project has put secondments allowing personal interaction back on the agenda. On Monday 23rd May we held an informal meeting with participants from Greece, Portugal, and Spain for an update on the roadmaps of different work packages to advance the achievement of project results.

From left to right Thomas Papakosmas (GEOSYSTEMS HELLAS); Ana Delicado (ICSUL), María-Jose Prados (Project Coordinator from USE); and Sofia Spyridonidou and Theodora Istoriou (AUTh).

PEARLS project re-boot

The widespread roll-out of the vaccination process and the secure control of outbreaks in the European Union and Israel have enabled us to gradually get the PEARLS Project back on track. In September 2021, we resumed the first secondment after the periods of lockdown and trans-national travel restrictions, followed by virtual meetings of the Steering Committee and the Project Consortium at the beginning of 2022. During this process, three new beneficiaries have joined the Project in Spain (two new academic members, the universities of Pablo de Olavide and Huelva) and in Italy (a new company, Habitech). The Project will move forward following the road map set up to December 2023.  

With our best hopes for this relaunch in uncertain times. 

PEARLS – Virtual Meeting Participants

OTHER NEWS

Chiara Chioni’s PhD thesis “READY-MADE MODEL. Digital tools for reality-based virtual landscapes”

On 31st October, Chiara Chioni defended her doctoral thesis at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering (DICAM), (University of Trento) entitled ‘READY-MADE MODEL. Digital tools for reality-based virtual landscapes’ also based on the results of the secondments she was able to carry out during the PEARLS project.
Sara Favargiotti, who has been one of the co-supervisors of her thesis, also belonged to the PEARLS group, so we are very proud of these results obtained by members of the project.
The whole PEARLS team is delighted with her success. Congratulations, Chiara
For more information about her thesis, please follow this link: https://hdl.handle.net/11572/430590

 

Transizione energetica e paesaggio: il progetto europeo PEARLS

PEARLS (an acronym for Planning And Engagement Arenas For Renewable Energy LandscapesS) saw the participation of partners from five countries in the Mediterranean sphere: in addition to Italy, entities and companies from Spain, Portugal, Greece and Israel participated.

Here more info: https://www.infobuildenergia.it/approfondimenti/transizione-energetica-paesaggio-rinnovabili/

 

Coopernico have a blog where PEARLS is featured.

Here the blog: https://www.coopernico.org/artigo/357

The PEARLS project is a collaboration between 5 countries and 16 institutions working together to understand regional diversity in favour of new advances in the low carbon economy. PEARLS is encouraging people’s commitment to safe, clean and efficient energy, while acting on spatial planning and social innovation in Renewable Energy Landscapes, bringing the vision and experience of Mediterranean countries to the rest of Europe.

Anna Codemo’s PhD thesis “Climate sensitive design for regenerative cities”

On October 2nd, Anna Codemo defended her doctoral thesis in Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering (University of Trento) entitled “Climate sensitive design for regenerative cities” based on the results coming from the secondment that she was able to performduring the PEARLS project.

The entire PEARLS team is delighted with your success. Congratulations, Anna

COVID-19 Changes: “5th Energy and Society Conference”.

Due to the extraordinary circumstances resulted from the Covid-19 Pandemic, the organizers of the “5th Energy and Society Conference”, which was supposed to take place in the University of Trento on September this year, have decided to postpone this event. The new dates will be the 10-12 February 2021.

For further information about this event, please consult their website through the following link:

CLICK HERE.

We will continue updating future changes regarding PEARLS arisen from this sanitary emergency.

Horizon 2020 Platform Results: A new tool of dissemination.

Some of the cartographical tools and 3D Monitoring on REL developed by our team in Geosystems Hellas and the University of Seville are already uploaded to the Horizon 2020 Platform Result and available for the general public under consultation, but our consortium is still working on exploitable results that could be included in here.

We will continue working on this matter and will let you know as soon as we have more results uploaded.

 

Call for the “International Geographic Congress”

In the upcoming August, the IGC will take place in Istanbul. Topics treated by the PEARLS Consortium will be addressed in the workshop “Sustainability Processes in the Low-carbon economy: Territories and Renewable Energies”

Deadline for submissions of abstracts:

13th of January (Link for Submissions)

More info about this call:

CLICK HERE

Fifth “Energy and Society” Conference

The University of Trento, one of the PEARLS Consortium participants, will host in September the fifth Conference on the social dimension of energy, aiming to exchange insightful ideas and to create opportunities for collaboration.

Through a wide variety of topics, interested participants are encouraged to present papers on different aspects of the Energy Transition treating its sociological aspects in different workshops/special sessions. Deadline for abstract submissions: 31st of January.

One of these workshops will be specially dedicated to Renewable Energy Landscapes, one of the main topics of our project.

More detailed info about this call:

CLICK HERE

Upcoming Workshop: “The role of transnational R&I networks to strengthen smart energy”.

Organised by the Smart Specialisation Platform, the objective of the workshop is to offer an overview on the how/why/who of Smart Grids in Europe, with the main aim of supporting national/regional authorities and key stakeholders across Europe in Planning and Designing  the allocation of their EU funds for supporting investments in smart grids R&I and deployment.

More info on schedules; objectives and application:

CLICK HERE

Energy Communities in Alicante, Spain.

This last month, EnerCoop in association with others have launched an initiative to consolidate Crevillant as a “local energy community of reference”. The Electricity cooperative has presented the objectives of this singular initiative which aims to foment self-consumption among others.

More info about this event:

CLICK HERE

 

Prof. Maria-Jose Prados visit the Ma’ale Gilboa Renewable Energy Wind Farm

Guest Lecture at Tel-Aviv University

The Department of Environmental Studies at Tel-Aviv University has hosted a guest lecture given by María José Prados on April 11th. The lecture gave an introduction to the “Planning and Engagement Arenas for Renewable Energy LandscapeS” project to a group of international students.

The lecture was given during the first part of Ms. Prados’ secondment in Israel, in partnership with Daniel Madar and Hagitt Ulanovsky from SP Interface.

PEARLS Project Presentation. 9th International Congress for Spatial Planning

Doctoral Course on “Social Innovation and Renewable Energies: the use of participatory methods”. This November Dr. Ana Delicado will give a two-day Research Seminar at the University of Seville.

The US held the oficial launch of the international action PEARLS, Planning and Engagement Arenas for Renewable Energy Landscapes

Categories

e-mail: eusoclab@us.es

Address: Avda. Ciudad Jardin, 20/22, 1ª pta.      41005 Sevilla (España)

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Funded by: Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions. H2020 Research Innovation Staff Exchange (RISE)

Project Number: 778039 - PEARLS

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 778039.

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