Net Zero Places and Innovation – Smart Rural 6

Continuing with the Smart Rural theme, the Centre for Research into Environmental Science and Technology (CREST), in collaboration with Connected Places Catapult and NICRE, is excited to announce this networking and knowledge sharing virtual event.

The mission of our 6th Smart Rural event is to encourage a better understanding of the opportunities to decarbonise and innovate within rural counties, as we all work towards a net zero future.

Deliberately choosing multiple lenses of energy, transport, land management, built environment and natural environment, how can we develop the narrative around the relationship between industrial and nature based solutions towards Net Zero? How can counties such as Shropshire lead on these conversations?

Agenda:

0900 – 0930 Networking (online networking room open)

0930 – 0940 Welcome from CREST & UOC (Professor Julieanna Powell-Turner, Deputy Dean of Science and Engineering, Research Director of CREST, University of Chester)

0940 – 1010 Net Zero Places Innovation (Richard Miller, Associate Director, Connected Places Catapult)

1010 – 1040 Decarbonising Rural (Professor Joe Howe, Director of Thornton Energy Institute, University of Chester)

1040 -1110 Climate Change in Shropshire: Challenges and Opportunities on the path to Net Zero ? (Tim Pritchard & Adrian Cooper, Shropshire Council)

1110 – 1130 Panel Q&A

1130 – 1140 Break (10 mins)

1140 – 1210 Decarbonising Transport in Rural Areas (Dr. Patrizia Franco, Demand Modeller, Connected Places Catapult)

1210 – 1240 Decarbonisation: what do we know and what are the challenges & opportunities? Natural Capital, Finance and the rural economy (Associate Professor Chris Short, University of Gloucester and National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise)

1240 – 1300 Panel Q&A

1300 – 1330 Lunch Break (online networking room open)

1330 – 1400 The Performance Gap – EPC’s, Net Zero and NabersUK (Andrew Cooper, Director of Evora Edge and Pump House Knowledge Hub, Shrewsbury)

1400 – 1420 Net Zero and electricity networks in rural areas (Poppy Maltby, Regen UK)

1420 – 1430 Panel Q&A

1430 – 1445 Summary and Close (Professor Julieanna Powell-Turner, Deputy Dean of Science and Engineering, Research Director of CREST, University of Chester)

CREST (ESBRC project) is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund.