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Sustainable Energy

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EpisodesEpisodesS05 E07 · ForestsNov 18, 2020 S05 E06 · BiomimicryOct 14, 2020 S05 E05 · Green ChemistrySep 16, 2020 View 30+ more
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About Sustainable Energy


A desire to lessen the dependence on fossil fuels has led to an increased use of sustainable energy options in recent years. This series takes a look at innovations in the sustainable energy industry that aim to improve the way people live, work and play, using science and technology to make people more efficient, save money and lower mankind's impact on Earth. Episodes highlight a variety of innovations, including low-intensity systems designed to take on the challenge of an increasing population and new architecture and construction techniques that are helping to build a sustainable future. … MORE

Emergency coal power plants used for first time as UK sees cold snap

Emergency coal power plants used for first time as UK sees cold snap
Mar 7,2023 12:10 pm

... The coal-fired plants were due to close last autumn to move the UK towards more Sustainable Energy production...

Who will pay for Indonesia's clean energy bill?

Who will pay for Indonesia's clean energy bill?
Nov 14,2022 9:31 pm

... Climate being one and coal phase-out being the other, " says Adhityani Putri, who runs Cerah, an Indonesian foundation working for a transition to Sustainable Energy...

G20: What will leaders talk about at the Bali summit?

G20: What will leaders talk about at the Bali summit?
Nov 13,2022 9:50 pm

... What does the group discuss? The issues discussed by G20 leaders have expanded from economics to include climate change, Sustainable Energy, international-debt forgiveness and taxing multinational corporations...

Climate change: UN warns key warming threshold slipping from sight

Climate change: UN warns key warming threshold slipping from sight
Oct 27,2022 7:50 am

... It argues that the energy crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine is causing changes that have the potential to hasten the transition to a more secure and Sustainable Energy system...

Energy prices: Households turning to coal ahead of 'hard winter'

Energy prices: Households turning to coal ahead of 'hard winter'
Oct 2,2022 8:30 am

... Ian Preston is the director of household energy services at the Centre for Sustainable Energy and runs the Safe and Warm Somerset programme...

Labour looks more united as conference gets going

Labour looks more united as conference gets going
Sep 30,2022 2:10 am

... So while last year Rachel Reeves pledged billions for green projects, this year there will be more specifics on how high-skilled jobs can be created across the country by accelerating a move to Sustainable Energy sources...

Could nuclear desalination plants beat water scarcity?

Could nuclear desalination plants beat water scarcity?
Jun 21,2022 4:05 am

... Ideas such as this, and Core Power s design are " promising" says Raya Al-Dadah, head of the Sustainable Energy Technology Laboratory at the University of Birmingham...

Dunsfold oil drilling application approved by government

Dunsfold oil drilling application approved by government
Jun 8,2022 9:10 pm

... UKOG chief executive Steve Sanderson said: " We welcome this decision and its backing for Loxley s gas as a secure, Sustainable Energy source with a far lower pre-combustion carbon footprint than imports...

Royal Society of Chemistry report says racism " pervasive"

May 29,2022 3:20 am

Of the 575 chemistry professors in the UK, just one is black.

In the 15 years Robert Mokaya has been a professor at Nottingham university, he has had all his applications for funding for research projects turned down by Britain's main chemistry funding body, now called the UK Research and Innovation agency.

" That is not typical for a professor, " he tells me phlegmatically.

" I have had research papers published which I would have expected would have enabled me to obtain funding to do follow-up research.

" I Wonder if this is typical for someone of my sort of surname.

" It has been very, very difficult, " he says.

Funding applications are reviewed and decided by fellow experts in The Field whose names are not published, but the name of the applicant is known to the reviewers.

Despite the constant rejections of funding applications, Robert has done extremely well for himself. He is a noted materials chemist, specialising in the study of materials for Sustainable Energy storage and has had numerous publications in scientific journals.

He was able to do his research because of funding from charities and learned societies, such as the Royal Society , which funds only the researchers it judges to have a track record of excellence in their work.

Robert was also awarded an OBE this year for services to the chemical sciences and is a trustee of the.

The RSC has published an investigation which shows that racism is ''pervasive'' in The Field . The Report finds that it is " hard to challenge" and marginalisation of minorities has become " normalised" in universities and industry.

The Investigation also bears out Robert's experience finding that minority ethnic researchers are less likely to get grant funding, promotions and are paid significantly less. In 2019/20 the average grant for a minority ethnic chemical sciences researcher was £320,000, compared with £355,000 for white colleagues.

The RSC's chief executive, Dr Helen Pain, described the stories of discrimination she had seen as part of The Investigation as " shocking".

" Racism is unfortunately a reality of chemical sciences, just as it is in wider society" she told Bbc News .

" We need to do better. We need to make a difference.

In response to The Report , Prof Melanie Welham, UKRI's executive champion for people, culture and talent, told Bbc News that The Agency was reviewing its processes to address concerns about unequal treatment.

" We know we must do more, and we're committed to doing so. "

" This includes piloting and learning to embed effective practice on equality, diversity and inclusion in our expert review and Assessment Practices , such as through double-blind reviewing, and allowing applicants to evidence their contributions in a wider range of ways.

The RSC report also shows that ethnic minority students are interested in studying chemistry at university, but they are put off by what they perceive to be an unwelcoming atmosphere of academic research. This is especially true of black students and researchers.

Official figures show that at undergraduate level 4. 9% of students studying chemistry-related subjects identify as black, significantly higher than The National 3. 0% of the UK population. But most choose not to enter research. Those who do fall away at every stage of the career ladder: 1. 4% of postgraduate chemistry researchers identify as black, 1% of lecturers and 0% of professors.

" I don't exist! " laughs Robert.

There are no black professors in the official statistics because The Number 1 is rounded down to zero for accounting purposes. Robert's good humour subsides, though, as he tells me about his journey to becoming the UK's only black chemistry professor. He says: ''It has been a struggle. "

" In academia you have to get signals from more senior colleagues that it is time to apply for a more senior role that comes up. Early in my career the signals I got is that this is not The Place For You and it is not The Right time For You .

''This Was The Most difficult part of my career and this is where the main blockage is for black chemists. Once I broke through and was networked it got better''.

Sandile Mtetwa is a black PhD student at Cambridge University. She co-founded a group for African students studying science subjects. She says many of them have decided not to struggle through. Instead they have decided to get jobs in the Private Sector because they felt there was " prejudice" and they would not be supported if They Went into academic research.

" The chemical sciences community is so network driven. You have to know someone to get on,'' she tells me.

''Someone senior has to support you, to help you get a position, to get a grant. If someone Up There is not cheering For You , you can't do much about it".

The RSC report says that there is little incentive for chemistry organisations to improve. Most initiatives are voluntary and appear to be having a limited impact, it says.

It finds that just 21 universities out of the 93 that signed up for the award hold a bronze Race Equality Charter award, run by the Higher Education charity Advance He . None have received a silver or gold award, despite the scheme being launched in 2016. Similarly, 37% of FTSE 100 companies have no representation of minority ethnicities on their board, despite a target set by an independent review, also in 2016, to have one director from a minority ethnic background on every board by 2021.

The RSC has launched a race and ethnicity unit to push for change in organisations. It has also Set Up a five-year mentoring scheme to help school leavers follow to chemistry-focused degrees and is working with employers to provide ethnic minority students with job opportunities and to help them with their career progression.

Robert Mokaya says he hopes that these initiatives will bring about changes for the Next Generation of ethnic minority chemical scientists.

" I Am concerned for those Coming Through The System .

" I don't think it is fair that those who get to a senior position in chemical sciences should have to go through what I have had to go through. "

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Source of news: bbc.com

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