<\/p>\n
The only downside for me were the plenary sessions. Several speakers suggested that we needed a new socio-economic paradigm to combat climate change \u2013 yet all were wedded to continued economic growth (the very lynchpin or our current paradigm!). Their ideas might challenge policymakers, but were actually conservative for a crowd of energy efficiency researchers and practitioners. Disappointingly, all the plenary speakers seemed to share a similar perspective, reducing the opportunity for debate.<\/p>\n
Last but not least, it was good to see this year’s Summer Study nearing gender parity, with women making up 42% of delegates. Personally, I heard 24 speakers or informal session conveners, of which 12 were men and 12 women, and only one session I attended \u2013 focused on technicalities of modelling \u2013 was male dominated.<\/p>\n
Back to chilly England now, two years until the next ECEEE.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"Noam](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/sussexenergygroup\/files\/2015\/06\/Noam-Bergman-on-a-beach.250x239.jpg?resize=150%2C150\")
Noam Bergman<\/a> joined SPRU in 2015 as a Research Fellow in CIED. His interests lie in systemic perspectives on energy use and societal shift to\u00a0sustainability, often using transitions theory. His previous research includes microgeneration and its role in a shift to a low carbon future; local and community initiatives for energy and emission savings; and social innovation and its potential. He also has experience developing modelling tools, including agent-based models for assessing sustainability implications of future scenarios. He previously worked at the University of Oxford and the University of East Anglia, including work on the EU MATISSE project on integrated sustainability assessment. Noam trained as a natural scientist, and has a BSc in physics and an MSc in environmental sciences, both from the Hebrew University, and a PhD in Environmental Sciences from the University of East\u00a0Anglia.<\/h5>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.sussex.ac.uk\/wcm\/helpers\/publications.php?p=129799\")
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<\/a><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The ECEEE Summer Study is the ‘work hard \/ play hard’\u00a0 conference of the energy research world. Set in the beautiful Giens Peninsula on the south coast of France, intense sessions, plenaries and informal meetings co-existed with swimming in the…<\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The ECEEE Summer Study is the ‘work hard \/ play hard’\u00a0 conference of the energy research world. Set in the beautiful Giens Peninsula on the south coast of France, intense sessions, plenaries and informal meetings co-existed with swimming in the…<\/span><\/p>\n