How do we frame, evaluate and facilitate community benefit from voluntary nature-based carbon offset projects? The second episode from our Community Carbon Offsetting mini seires is a live recorded Q&A session featuring Hamish Trench, CEO of the Scottish Land Commission, Sarah Nicholas, Carbon Projects Manager at Forestry and Land Scotland, and Ailsa Raeburn, Head of the Community Assets Team and Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Chair of Community Land Scotland.

In March, Matt hosted the Community Carbon Offsetting conference at the Unversity of Strathclyde, which formed a fascinating gathering of people to discuss how land use and ownership is changing across rural Scotland in response to the booming carbon offset market. This mini series will showcase highlights from the conference - the first of which is this passionate talk about community with reknowned writer, academic and activist Alastair McIntosh. You can access the slides Alastair refers...

Edinburgh is both prosperous and wealthy - but also has unique and complex issues to tackle when it comes to reaching their ambitious Net Zero targets. This episode is a deep dive into Scotland's capital city, featuring Councillor Cammy Day, Leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, Bridie Ashrowan, Chief Executive of EVOC (Edinburgh Voluntary Organisation's Council) and Matthew Lancashire, Director of Zero Matters.

What role do energy network operators - or DNOs - have in developing smart local energy systems? Becky - along with guest co-host Dr Jeff Hardy - lead an EnergyREV panel discussion with: Maxine Frerk, director at Grid Edge Policy Adam Bell, head of policy at Stonehaven Melanie Bryce, SSEN Oxfordshire programme director on Project LEO (Local Energy Oxfordshire) Doug Cook, deputy director at OFGEM responsible for digitalisation and decentralisation

What is the role of energy-smart places and smart local energy approaches in securing a just transition? In this Local Zero Live, recorded at EnergyREV's final summit in central London, Becky and Fraser welcome a panel of guests to explore how tech innovations and energy policy can work fairly, and for citizens and communities. Guests in this episode: Karen Barass of Climate Insights Donal Brown, University of Sussex research fellow Joanne Wade from the Association for Decentralised Energy...

Fraser has finally completed his PhD ... but what was it about? This episode is dedicated to the themes of Fraser's thesis, exploring social inequalities in uptake of low carbon technologies like solar pv and heat pumps, and uncovers ways to rectify those inequalities at local and community levels. Congratulations Fraser! Some elements of Fraser's PhD work are already publicly available -...

Concluding our four-part mini-series focusing on the work of Innovate UK's Prospering From the Energy Revolution (PFER) Programme, Matt and Fraser chat with Eva Goudouneix from Repowering London and Jamie Rea from the Electric Storage Company. This week: how to engage the public with energy projects and technology. 

This penultimate instalment of our month-long Prospering from the Energy Revolution (PFER) series focuses on Skills and the Supply Chain. Matt, Becky and Fraser chat acronyms, and a personal experience of issues faced by those trying to find work in the energy sector, before being joined by Louise Alter from Equans and Melanie Bryce from SSEN. 

This February, the Local Zero team are bringing you weekly podcasts focused on the work of the Prospering from the Energy Revolution (PFER) funding innovation. This week the focus is on finance. Joining us for the second of these special episodes are Cheryl Hiles, Director of Energy Capital (West Midlands Combined Authority) and Tim Rose, Programme Manager of Energy Superhub Oxford. But before all that, the team celebrate the submission of a certain PhD...

This February, the Local Zero team are bringing you a new podcast every single week! These special episodes are all focused on the work of the Prospering from the Energy Revolution (PFER) innovation funding. First up, a focus on policy and regulation to unleash smart, local energy systems (SLES). This one features Chris Dunham from Carbon Descent, and Merlin Hyman, Chief Executive of Regen. 

How well do our local councils perform when it comes to tackling the climate crisis? One not-for-profit organisation - Climate Emergency UK - makes it its business to rate and measure the performance and progress of local authorities, with their innovative Council Climate Action Scorecards. For our first episode of 2023, Becky and Matt are joined by Hannah Jewell, the group's Campaigns and Policy Officer.

Joining the usual team for a look back at 2022 in energy (with festive drinks and mince pies in hand) are Strathclyde University's Dr Jen Roberts and Manish Joshi. Together, they unpack an eventful (!) year, discuss key learning points from the energy crisis, and look for reasons to be cheerful. There is also the long-awaited return of Future or Fiction.

How are communities benefitting financially from commercial suppliers paying them for playing host to wind farms? Matt chats to Ian Leaver, Chief Officer of Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston Community Company, and SSE Renewables' Lindsay Dougan, to explore the benefits of these schemes, using Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston as an example.

Scottish Power's Robin Cathcart and Owen Black on the company's role in helping Scotland and the UK to decarbonise. Scottish Power is part of the Iberdrola Group, which recently announced a target to be net zero in all scopes by 2040 - 10 years sooner than had been previously aimed for.

Are there reasons to be cheerful about climate change? What are the most data-driven changes we can make to really move the dial on carbon emissions? Dr Hannah Ritchie is Head of Research at Our World In Data, an online platform hosted by Oxford University which aims to 'make progress against the world’s largest problems'. Matt speaks with Hannah about how the data she sees and collates tells a surprisingly optimistic story - and how numbers can be a powerful tool to hold governments and...

A year since Glasgow hosted COP26, the team reflect on the event's legacy for the city, and particularly for Strathclyde University. Matt, Becky and Fraser are joined by Dr Roddy Yarr, Strathclyde's Executive Lead for Sustainability, and Manish Joshi, CEO of the Students Union.

Ahead of COP 27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Matt and Becky are joined by Professor Jim Skea, Co-Chair of Working Group III of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change) to discuss the benefits, practicalities and obstacles standing in the way of a just transition. Jim is also a Professor of Sustainable Energy at Imperial College, and Chair of Scotland’s Just Transition Commission.

With the energy crisis showing no signs of slowing, and UK government policy changing and changing again seemingly by the hour, we return to the pressing issue of fuel poverty. Joining Matt and Fraser are Jessica Cook from National Energy Action (NEA) and Aimee Ambrose, Professor of Energy Policy at Sheffield Hallam University. 

Can a smart-meter really change your life? This is the fiftieth full-length episode of Local Zero - Matt, Becky and Fraser reflect on being half a century old, EVs, and the recent energy cap announcement -- before being joined by guest Jeremy Yapp. Jeremy is Head of Flexible Energy Systems at BEAMA (the UK Trade Association for Manufacturers and Providers of Energy Infrastructure Technologies and Systems). Jeremy outlines how just how crucial Smart Meters can be for household budgeting, and...

Recorded at EnergyREV's central London summit on smart local energy, the team explore what a smarter, more local energy system might look like, and how it could drive the push to net zero and tackle the energy crisis. Matt and Becky are joined by EnergyREV's Rob Saunders, Teodora Kaneva from Tech UK, UK100's Karen Barrass, and Professor Jeff Hardy, Senior Research Fellow in Climate Change and the Environment at Imperial College London's Grantham Institute. Links:...

Disabled people and their households are among those most likely to be impacted by the energy crisis and associated rise in living costs. Until now, impacts on disabled consumers seem all too often to have been overlooked by both policy makers and media. For this special episode, the team are joined by Gemma Hope, director of policy at Leonard Cheshire, and Lizzie Green, campaigns manager at Sense.

The Local Electricity Bill could - if enacted - open up local supply of electricity to nearby communities. Supporters claim it could bring to market some of the most affordable forms of renewable power, like onshore wind and solar. The bill has support from around 300 MPs, and is currently moving through the Westminster parliament. Fraser, Matt and Becky are joined by Power for People's Steve Shaw, to explore what the proposed change could mean, particularly for energy bills. Steve also has...

The UK Government has committed to installing 50GW of offshore wind energy by 2030. What are the impacts of offshore wind on communities, and how can we ensure they benefit? Fraser, Becky and (newly minted Professor!) Matt are joined by Grace Millman, Energy Analyst at Regen, and Dr Claire Haggett, Senior Lecturer of Sustainability at the University of Edinburgh. Find us at www.localzeropod.com

As many of us gear up for a summer break, often jetting off to the sun, just how culpable are flight emissions in the context of the climate emergency? Who is most responsible? And is guilt-free flying ever likely to be possible? Joining the LZ team for this chat are Anna Hughes, CEO of Flight Free UK, and Abhilasha Fullonton, a Research Associate at Tyndall Manchester. Find us at www.localzeropod.com.

How can we shift our demand for energy in the home, perhaps by shaping and flexing our domestic routines to match periods of peak 'clean' energy production? Does our relationship with technology have to change in order to reduce demand and therefore cut emissions? This episode continues our focus on the role of demand in delivering net zero - specifically focusing on one key area of energy consumption - in our homes. Joining Matt and Becky this time are: Sarah Darby, Associate Professor in...