Dear all,
We would like to share our latest events, projects and co-operations with you.
It is with great pleasure, and we are excited too, that we for the second time will host the Energy Academy’s global symposium ”From Next to Best Practice”. The date is set to 18-20 September 2013 at Samsoe, and this year’s headline is ”Local reduce & the commons”. The symposium is for everyone in our network that is large and broad, local and international. We ask the participants to bring a vision for the next years’ co-operation and hope there’ll be good ideas for agendas that we especially should focus on to strengthen our work and network. If you are interested in local development and the Energy Academy’s vision 2.0 you’re welcome. We can only host 40 participants using the first come, first served principle.
We hope that this newsletter will inspire you to new project ideas and community projects – locally, nationally and globally.
The Energy Academy wishes our network a really nice summer!
Director Søren Hermansen and manager Michael Larsen
LOCAL PERSPECTIVES
Electric Car Day
Lene Skafte Bestmann
The Energy Academy held the largest electric cars’ day in Denmark on 11 May 2013. Almost all kinds of electric vehicles were represented at this day, and it was well visited. Many tried the different electric vehicles like cars, bicycles, busses and golf cars and had a chat with the exhibitors about them. Electric cars are part of the plan making Samsoe independent on fossil fuels. The day was arranged in a close co-operation between the municipality of Samsoe, the Energy Academy and ”Transportgruppen” (transport group, ed.) that consists of volunteers from the island who provide their network and experience. The electric vehicles representatives were excited about the positive attitude they met at Samsoe.
Would you like to save energy in your shop and also money?
Michael Kristensen
The Energy Academy takes part in the EU project ”Night Hawks” which purpose is to point to energy savings in shops. Applications wanted!
The Energy Academy is seeking shop keepers, who are interested in having the energy use (electricity, water and heating) in their shop tested. ”Usually it’s possible to find between 5-20% savings”, says Michael Kristensen from the Energy Academy, and he has done more than 100 energy tests in households at Samsoe.
Testing the energy use/consumption can be done after opening hours, and that’s why the project is called Night Hawks. The shop will receive a list suggesting where there are savings to be made, including an estimate of how much this will mean in DDK. This offer is for all convenience shops, chains and large as well as small retailers. If you’re interested, please contact Michael Kristensen or Jan Jantzen from the Energy Academy.
The project started with a visit in a Swedish shopping center at the island Öland. ”Our focus is cooling (food and climate), lightening, ventilation and heating”, says Roger Gunnarsson from the Energy Office Sydost that coordinates Night Hawks and the 8 participating countries.
Seen from Samsoe’s point of view the project is contributing to meet the energy plans in our Samsoe 2.0 vision, and all participants in Night Hawks will visit Samsoe in the beginning of October 2013. They will stay for a couple of days to help select those savings that are easiest to go through with. The project will end in October 2015.
New exhibition about Samsoe 2.0 at the Energy Academy
Malene Annikki Lundén
We have improved and renewed the exhibition that was launched in 2007.
The Energy Academy was build by Arkitema in 2007 and back then our exhibition illustrated which resources we had to use to make Samsoe self-sufficient with renewable energy and thereby be the Renewable Energy Island in Denmark. Now the Energy Academy opens it doors to a new exhibition that will be communicating Samsoe 2.0 vision through videos. These show how Samsoe is setting the sustainable transition towards becoming a fossil free society in motion. We are not only telling about energy, but also ownership, leadership and community. Visit us and experience the change!
NATIONAL PERSPECTIVES
The educational platform at Energy Camp and Energy Safari has contributed a chapter to a new ground book in pedagogy
Malene Annikki Lundén
We are happy to announce that the Energy Academy’s holistic approach to learning children and youngsters about sustainability is now part of the new book “Håndbog til pædagoguddannelsen. Ti perspektiver på pædagogik” (Handbook to the pedagogy education. 10 perspectives on pedagogy, ed.) that is out in August at Hans Reitzels Forlag.
The Energy Academy has the funniest and most alive platform for teaching and serving schools through Energy Camp and Energy Safari. During the last 5 years, together with app. 10.000 pupils, we have worked intensely to make science and technology swing with sustainability. The editors of this new book, Trine Ankerstjerne and Stig Broström, have noticed that – and our chapter is called “Værksted, natur og teknik. Læren om bæredygtig udvikling og uddannelse” (Workshop, nature and technique. Learning about sustainable development and education, ed.).
The Energy Academy shares experiences with Refshaleøen in Copenhagen
Søren Hermansen
The Energy Academy has made a co-operation agreement with SE Big Blue and
Refshaleøen. This co-operation shall strengthen Refshaleøens intention to be an exciting place, where innovation and experiences can be united with a conscious green plan for the future use of the area. The Energy Academy expects to get a “green embassy” in Copenhagen where national and international relations can meet – on a kind of island.
The Energy Academy lacks space
Michael Larsen
The Energy Academy is a common meeting place concerning sustainability.
The academy has already through many years had a lot of yearly activities and visitors from Denmark and abroad, and we have collaborated with educational institutions, organisations and companies from Denmark and the rest of the world. Our development strategy is about green education, satellite islands and – cities and partnerships locally and internationally. A new common meeting place will be crucial in order for us to realize our strategy and not least in order for Samsoe to continue to be a role model as a sustainable community.
The new meeting place, Samsoe Energy Hotel, will be located at the Energy Academy and the new facilities with accommodation shall supplement the existing offers at the island. Samsoe Energy Hotel is made up by local firms and organisations that in co-operation with LAG Laesoe, Samsoe og Aeroe and the municipality of Samsoe have started the development process, working on the concept and prospect material.
The Energy Academy – a communicative platform
Michael Larsen
The Energy Academy is telling local stories and communicating about change processes within sustainability.
One of the Energy Academy’s focus areas is information and communication. Our starting point is the many really good results from being the Renewable Energy Island in Denmark. Today the academy and the municipality of Samsoe are working on the next step: to become independent of fossil fuels by 2030. This transition must be made and implemented in co-creation with the citizens of Samsoe – with a local commitment.
The Energy Academy tells about the development up till today and about the future of Samsoe to visitors from Denmark as well as from abroad. We do also tell about at arrangements, workshops and conferences nationally and on a global scale. The academy has 5000 guests every year, visiting briefly, participating in guided tours or education. Our guests are from primary and secondary schools, researchers, politicians, public employed, technical professionals, energy tourists and people on summer holiday. Our aim is to inform and communicate about the work we do at the academy, including the co-creative processes that creates sustainable improvement in our local community.
New movie about Samsø 2.0: ”FÆLLESKABER”
Søren Hermansen
Anne Katrine Hornemann, architect and city developer/planner , together with a movie producers, doing a documentary movie about communities that have manifested innovative physical environments and projects in Denmark because they were and acted together as a living local community. Samsoe as Denmark’s Renewable Energy island is one of the examples. The movie is supported by Statens Kunstfond
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES
Samsoe is part of SMILEGOV
Michael Larsen
SMILEGOV is a new EU project that will help island communities to focus on renewable energy and sustainability as a driving force for the future life and activity on the islands.
SMILEGOV is based on experiences from the project (www.islepact.eu) where 62 European islands developed sustainable energy plans and concrete projects. SMILEGOV’s purpose is to improve an effective implementation of sustainable energy action plans at European islands by making collaboration on international, national, regional and local levels possible. An active and collaborative platform is one of the most important steps on the path to a consequent and effective energy planning at local levels. Especially when it’s about island communities, it has showed that local involvement and ownership it is very important in order to uptain a sustainable development, resource stewardship, economic growth and life quality for citizens and guests.
Samsoe is working with Region Gotland and Öland in a common project part to support more sharing of knowledge between the different groups of islands that wants to take part in the project. With the help from different experiences on three islands sectors are prioritized, good examples is shared, strategic advice is given etc. The Energy Academy has the project management and leadership of this project.
Africa – it gets better day by day
Malene Lundén
In February 2013 The Energy Academy was at exchange in Kufunda Learning Village in Zimbabwe. We have worked with them for many years. This time our focus was to exchange experiences and knowledge about how to create new local communities based on local ownership and without support from any national institutions. 3 small projects have come out of this visit.