Call for Abstracts: Conference “New pathways for community energy and storage” (Groningen, June 6-7, 2019)

The Conference “New pathways for community energy and storage” will take place in Groningen on June 6-7, 2019.

Background
Our energy landscape is changing. Local communities are increasingly taking active roles and emerging as new actors in the energy system. For example, some local energy initiatives own solar panels, wind turbines and energy storage system collectively, while others build renewable energy configurations, together with other energy system actors. Community energy and energy storage may enable effective energy system integration and get maximum benefits of local generation. This may lead to more flexible and resilient energy supply systems, and therefore, can play an important role in achieving renewable energy and climate policy objectives.

Aim of the conference
The aim of this conference is to explore new and innovative socio-technological energy configurations at local and regional level including energy storage.

Bringing together researchers and practitioners
This conference brings together researchers and practitioners interested in the societal dimensions of technology and the technological aspects of social innovation. The focus is specifically on the field of community renewable energy and energy storage.

Key themes
Some key themes will be:

• Socio-technical innovation dynamics in community energy and energy storage
• Co-creation and user-inspired innovation
• Citizens engagement, (self-) governance and local business models
• Comparative institutional analysis: national traditions, cultures, physical constraints, governance and power relations
• New roles and responsibilities of key parties in the transition
• Decentrality, autonomy and resiliency
• Synergies, tensions, dilemmas and challenges at various societal levels
• Variability of technologies and energy configurations
• Responsible innovation in community energy and energy storage
• Scenario’s and scenario analysis
• Value sensitive design and energy technology

Program
Key note speakers will be among others: Michael Ornetzeder, David Parra and Ankit Kumar. They will present new insights, findings and concepts regarding:

1. Decentralization, citizen’s empowerment and the energy transition
   II. Social and technological innovations in community energy storage
   III. Governing local energy transition in the Western world
   IV. The Big picture: the potential of local energy in developing countries

In addition:

• Parallel sessions
• Round table
• Plenaries: debate
• Presentations of new configurations and storage technologies
• Posters
• Book exhibition
• Excursion

Submission of contributions
As from 16 January 2019, we will open a website where you will be able to submit the topic you would like to present (practitioner) or an abstract of a paper (academic) of max. 300 words. There will also be a poster session, so you can bring a poster of your work. If you would like to do so, please submit an abstract of max. 150 words.

We will explore if there is interest to bundle some of the contributions in a special issue of a peer reviewed journal (journal to be determined).

For more information, please contact h.j.van.der.windt@rug.nl or e.c.j.vanoost@utwente.nl.

Venue
The two-day conference takes place at the Energy Academy Europe at the Zernike campus of the University of Groningen. This is an inspiring location for our event as it is the most sustainable education building of the Netherlands. The building is a place where societal partners, education and academia join forces to work on research and innovation in the field of energy. As the building meets the highest sustainable energy standards, it received the BREEAM-rating ‘Outstanding’.

Organising team
Dr Henny van der Windt
Dr Ellen van Oost
Dr Binod Koirala
Esther van der Waal MSc.