We really appreciate our students who are pushing UiO to become more sustainable,we congratulate our researchers who are steadily building a larger portfolio of projects
contributing new knowledge on sustainable energy systems and societies, and we thank all our external partners both nationally and internationally for collaborations throughout the year.
2019 has been a great year for UiO:Energy, for UiO and for Oslo as the European Green Capital.
It started in January with the official opening of Oslo as the Green Capital in the City Hall, setting the stage for a large number of events throughout the year. UiO:Energy had the pleasure of coordinating UiO´s efforts in “Miljøhovedstadsåret”, and we would particularly like to thank all students and researchers who have contributed in various ways to approximately 25 different events aimed at everything from kindergarten kids to professors.
At the very last day of January, the first version of “Let’s talk about energy” took place, and more than 120 people found their way to Skatten at Tøyen for a great evening of energy talks from young researchers. We are very much looking forward to continuing this in 2020.
Fast forward to May and a definitive highlight was the announcement of the new social science-based research centres for environmentally friendly energy (FME) at the annual Energy Research Conference hosted by the Research Council. For the first time UiO will coordinate an FME-centre, FME Include, with a very timely focus on a socially just energy transition.
May also saw the launch of UiO’s first complete climate gas budget. UiO:Energy took part in this, and we’re very much looking forward to keep working on the full climate and environmental strategy of the university, which will be finalised next year.
In June, UiO:Energy coordinated the NorRen summer school on sustainable transport together with two other FME-centres (MoZEES and Bio4Fuels), and gathered PhD students from different institutions and various disciplines for a full week of lectures, group work, site visits and social activities. It was both enjoyable and impressive to see the next generation of researchers enthusiastically attacking interdisciplinary projects.
Fall brought quite a number of events organised by UiO:Energy, including two events at Arendalsuka, a second “Let’s talk about Energy”, two energy sessions at the Cutting Edge festival, UiO:Energy Forum 2019 and Science Industry Meetup – the latter two are covered by separate articles in this newsletter. UiO:Energy also contributed in various ways to a number of other events, but we’ll skip going through the full list.
This Monday the City Hall was the stage for the official closing ceremony of the European Green Capital Year, but as Oslo’s mayor said: this is only the beginning!
UiO:Energy very much feel the same way. 2019 has been busy, but it has also just been the start of a large number of activities and processes that will continue next year and that we’re very much looking forward to partaking in. Climate negotiations in Madrid were not particularly successful, but at least there is a green shift going on in Norway, in Oslo and at UiO!