Changing the world through renewables
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By Claire Mack, chief executive, Scottish Renewables
Anyone who works in renewables has somewhere within them the deep conviction that we are here to change the world.
One of the most exciting aspects of what we do right here in Scotland is our world-leading status – something we as an industry are rightly proud of and talk about a lot.
The idea that what we are doing here in the northern hemisphere is actually a global game changer is one of the most exciting aspects of working in renewables.
That theme – renewables changing the world – is one we’re going to focus on as part of this year’s Scottish Renewables Annual Conference, which will be held on March 24 and 25 in Edinburgh.
The first session will hear from Chris Stark, chief executive of the Committee on Climate Change, and Jonathan Brearley, CEO of Ofgem, who will discuss the current and future effects of climate change, and consider how the decisions we make here and now will impact how far – and how quickly – we can develop projects that will meet our clean growth ambitions.
Speakers from Burness Paull, CBI Scotland and ScottishPower will discuss how Scotland can make the most of the technologies, the resources and the skill we have here to tackle climate change – and the opportunities and challenges faced in doing so.
This conference is the key gathering for anyone working within the low-carbon industry, to bring together our collective knowledge and expertise to ensure that we have a credible and secure plan in place for the energy transition we need to make.
I am delighted to announce the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon MSP, will deliver a keynote address to open day one of the conference.
The voices of the next generation – think Greta Thunberg and youth climate strikes – have been helping to raise awareness of what we do and why we do it, and climate change has never been more central within public debate.
On March 25, the conference’s second day, delegates will hear from a range of speakers from across industry, including Scottish Government, National Grid ESO and the European Marine Energy Centre.
Key discussions will focus on the future of planning, finance, grid and the way we work sensitively but realistically in fragile landscapes.
Our guest speaker, Tim Marshall, author of the book Prisoners of Geography, will join us to discuss how clean energy is causing major shifts in the geopolitics of the world and will create new global dynamics based on resources that are much less volatile than oil.
We’ll also be looking hard at how we create the best environment for all our technologies to flourish, so that every tool in the box can be used to ensure that Scotland and the UK leads the world in deploying renewable energy in the fight against climate change.
We look forward to seeing you in Edinburgh on March 24 and 25 to discuss these issues and many more.
- Scottish Renewables’ Annual Conference will take place on March 24 and 25 in Edinburgh. For more information go to www.scottishrenewables.com/events/40-annual-conference-2020
