Best practices for developing a human centered monitoring system for CO2 storage projects through a collaborative and interdisciplinary research approach

This deliverable was created in the context of the European ACT II project DigiMon and is part of work package 3 (designing a human-centered monitoring system), task 3.3 (evaluation of the research process and writing best practices report)

Critical skills needs and challenges for STEM/STEAM graduates increased employability and entrepreneurship in the solar energy sector

© 2023 The Authors. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2023.113776Energy produced by photovoltaic module (PVM) is poised to deliver the UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG-7) by 2030 and Net-Zero by 2050 but not until ample graduates with adequate Solar Energy Technology (SET) skills are produced by Higher education institutions (HEIs). Although PVM has witnessed significant penetration globally, the sustainability of the growth of the sector is challenged by attendant monotonic skilled labour shortages. The evolving growth imbalance is critical in the European Union (EU), limits her global competitiveness and necessitates the need to create wider awareness on the green technology to stimulate more production of solar energy sector (SES) specific skills graduates. Discussing the mismatch between the skills Europe needs and has in the SES, the study outlines key critical skills Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) cum Arts (STEAM) graduates ought to possess to secure sector employment and the challenges limiting them from acquiring the competencies. The review is conducted via extensive study of relevant literature, analysis of interviews and observations. Academic, industrial, and entrepreneurial skills are identified as critical SES needs. Designing and running educational modules/curricula that embed the identified solar technology specialist skills on students and learners are proposed as vehicle to increase their employability and entrepreneurship. This study profiles trends and developments in the SES for stakeholders’ increased awareness while presenting the specialist skills in-demand for employment in the sector. The adoption of SET Training (SETechTra) curricula/modules by the EIs will substantially increase the production of industry-ready graduates whilst decreasing the SES skills gap.The authors acknowledge the European Union for funding the project entitled “Solar Energy Technology Training (SETechTra) Module for STEM Undergraduates” which produced this article under the Erasmus + Programme of the European Union. Project detail include: €392, 000.00 total grant; 36 months duration and agreement no.: 2020-1-UK01-KA203-079236. Innovate UK is also acknowledged for supporting the development of the mobile solar power system, project No. 83383.Published versio

Geothermal energy - sustainable development and local societies

Geothermal energy is a renewable source of energy, which constitutes a natural domestic wealth. The earth allocates enormous reserves of thermal energy, which, theoretically, could cover the total of the population’s energy needs and, practically, participating in the energy system with a remarkable percentage. However, the predominance of conventional sources of energy for a lot of years in the international energy planning, had as a consequence the delay in the exploitation of renewable sources of energy and particularly the geothermal energy. Geological conditions prevailing in Greece resulted in high heat flow and in the occurrence of a large number of geothermal fields, characterizing Greece as a country with favourable geothermal resources. Despite the remarkable geothermal wealth, the development of geothermal energy in our country is not satisfying in comparison to the development of other Renewable Energy Sources as well as in comparison with other countries. The main questions of Phd thesis are: 1. Which are the reasons that have created barriers in the development and have led to the limited exploitation of geothermal energy in Greece? 2. Is it possible the current situation to be inverted and how? The main axes of Phd thesis are: a)Categorisation of the environmental impacts intensity per type of environmental problem - contribution of available technology in the treatment of any environmental effect. b)Recording of Greek geothermal potential with the use of GIS. c)Investigation of puiblic opinion in Milos and Nisyros islands with regard to the subjects of geothermal development, due to the local communities oppositions in that areas. d)Evaluation and interpretation of the results of public survey with the implementation of two methods. e)Development of promotion strategies for the geothermal energy. The results of Phd thesis are: 1. The methodology of investigation of NIMBY syndrome in the exploitation of geothermal energy was configured. 2. For first time, the opinions of residents of Milos and Nisyros were committed and investigated with research of the public opinion,. More specific: · The critical parameters were appointed with regard to the subjects of geothermal development in these areas. · The sovereign problems that cause the reactions were evaluated. · The role of informing in the configuration of common opinion in NIMBY syndrome was realised. 3. Configured a Road Chart for the promotion of geothermal energy in Greece, which it is based in three pylons (State, Society, Environment), proposing policies and strategies in critical sectors, in order to reverse the current situation.Η γεωθερμική ενέργεια είναι μια ανανεώσιμη πηγή ενέργειας, όπου αποτελεί φυσικό εγχώριο πλούτο. Η Γη διαθέτει τεράστια αποθέματα θερμικής ενέργειας, τα οποία θα μπορούσαν να καλύψουν τις ενεργειακές ανάγκες του πληθυσμού & να συμμετάσχουν στο ενεργειακό σύστημα με ένα αξιόλογο ποσοστό. Ωστόσο, η επικράτηση των συμβατικών πηγών ενέργειας στο διεθνή ενεργειακό σχεδιασμό για πολλά χρόνια, είχε ως συνέπεια την υστέρηση στην αξιοποίηση των ΑΠΕ & ιδιαίτερα της γεωθερμίας. Η χώρα μας είναι ιδιαίτερα ευνοημένη όσον αφορά τη γεωθερμική ενέργεια, καθώς, όπως έχει αποδείξει η βασική έρευνα που πραγματοποιείται τα τελευταία 30 περίπου χρόνια, διαθέτει ένα σημαντικό αριθμό γεωθερμικών πεδίων & πλήθος γεωθερμικά ελπιδοφόρων περιοχών. Η εκμετάλλευση της θα μπορούσε να αποδώσει σημαντικά οφέλη, οικονομικά, κοινωνικά & περιβαλλοντικά. Όμως, η αξιοποίηση των γεωθερμικών ρευστών στην Ελλάδα είναι αρκετά περιορισμένη, καθώς οι προσπάθειες του παρελθόντος δεν απέφεραν τα αναμενόμενα αποτελέσματα. Τα βασικά ερωτήματα της διατριβής είναι: 1. Ποιοι λόγοι έχουν δημιουργήσει φραγμούς στην ανάπτυξη & έχουν οδηγήσει στην περιορισμένη αξιοποίηση της γεωθερμίας στη Ελλάδα; 2. Μπορεί να αναστραφεί η σημερινή κατάσταση και πως; Οι κύριοι άξονες της διατριβή είναι: α)Κατηγοριοποίηση της έντασης των περιβαλλοντικών επιπτώσεων ανά τύπο περιβαλλοντικού προβλήματος - διαθέσιμη τεχνολογία αντιμετώπισής τους. β)Καταγραφή Ελληνικού γεωθερμικού δυναμικού με χρήση GIS. γ)Διερεύνηση της άποψης της κοινής γνώμης στα νησιά Μήλος & Νίσυρος σχετικά με τα θέματα ανάπτυξης της γεωθερμίας, περιοχές με αρνητικό πλαίσιο συναίνεσης των τοπικών κοινωνιών. δ)Αξιολόγηση & ερμηνεία των αποτελεσμάτων της έρευνας εφαρμόζοντας δύο μεθόδους. ε)Ανάπτυξη στρατηγικών προώθησης της γεωθερμίας. Τα αποτελέσματα της διατριβής είναι: 1.Διαμορφώθηκε μεθοδολογία διερεύνησης του φαινομένου ΝΙΜΒΥ στην εκμετάλλευση της γεωθερμίας. 2.Καταγράφηκαν & διερευνήθηκαν με έρευνα κοινής γνώμης, για πρώτη φορά, οι απόψεις των κατοίκων της Μήλου & Νισύρου. Πιο συγκεκριμένα: · Αναδείχθηκαν οι κρίσιμες παράμετροι σχετικά με τα θέματα ανάπτυξης της γεωθερμίας στις περιοχές αυτές. · Αξιολογήθηκαν τα κυρίαρχα προβλήματα που προκαλούν τις αντιδράσεις. · Διαπιστώθηκε ο ρόλος της ενημέρωσης στη διαμόρφωση της κοινής γνώμης στο φαινόμενο ΝΙΜΒΥ. 3.Διαμορφώθηκε Οδικός Χάρτης για την προώθηση της γεωθερμίας στην Ελλάδα, όπου στηρίζεται σε τρεις πυλώνες (Πολιτεία, Κοινωνία, Περιβάλλον), προτείνοντας σειρά μέτρων & στρατηγικών σε κρίσιμους τομείς, ώστε να αντιστραφεί η σημερινή κατάσταση

Understanding Societal Requirements of CCS Projects: Application of the Societal Embeddedness Level Assessment Methodology in Four National Case Studies

The DigiMon project aims to develop and demonstrate an affordable, flexible, societally embedded, and smart digital monitoring early warning system for any subsurface CO2 storage field. The societal embeddedness level (SEL) assessment is a novel methodology which provides insight into the societal requirements for technological innovation to be deployed. The SEL assessment framework was applied in four case studies, concerning CCS development in Norway, the Netherlands, Greece, and Germany. The resulting societal embeddedness levels of CCS, on a scale of 1–4, were SEL 3 in Norway with considerable progress towards level 4, followed by the Netherlands with SEL 2 with several initiatives towards offshore demonstration projects, and then by Greece and Germany with SEL 1. The outcomes of the SEL assessments show which societal requirements have been met in current CCS developments and which ones should be improved for CCS deployment. They also show that monitoring currently is a regulatory requirement as part of permitting procedures, while it may alleviate community concerns on safety, provided that it has certain attributes. The insights from the four national case studies are further used in the DigiMon project to develop the innovative societal embedded DigiMon monitoring system

Understanding Societal Requirements of CCS Projects: Application of the Societal Embeddedness Level Assessment Methodology in Four National Case Studies

The DigiMon project aims to develop and demonstrate an affordable, flexible, societally embedded, and smart digital monitoring early warning system for any subsurface CO2 storage field. The societal embeddedness level (SEL) assessment is a novel methodology which provides insight into the societal requirements for technological innovation to be deployed. The SEL assessment framework was applied in four case studies, concerning CCS development in Norway, the Netherlands, Greece, and Germany. The resulting societal embeddedness levels of CCS, on a scale of 1–4, were SEL 3 in Norway with considerable progress towards level 4, followed by the Netherlands with SEL 2 with several initiatives towards offshore demonstration projects, and then by Greece and Germany with SEL 1. The outcomes of the SEL assessments show which societal requirements have been met in current CCS developments and which ones should be improved for CCS deployment. They also show that monitoring currently is a regulatory requirement as part of permitting procedures, while it may alleviate community concerns on safety, provided that it has certain attributes. The insights from the four national case studies are further used in the DigiMon project to develop the innovative societal embedded DigiMon monitoring system

On the Organisation of Translation—An Inter- and Transdisciplinary Approach to Developing Design Options for CO<inf>2</inf> Storage Monitoring Systems

Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration has become a common practice in technology development projects. Rarely, however, the integration (and translation) of knowledge from different disciplines and different societal contexts is reported in detail. In this article, we address this gap and present the inter- and transdisciplinary technology development in the international research project “DigiMon—Digital Monitoring of CO2 Storage Projects” that aims to develop a human-centered monitoring system. Based on interviews, surveys and stakeholder workshops in Norway, Greece, Germany and The Netherlands, we identify characteristics of CO2 storage monitoring systems that reflect the concerns and expectations of publics and stakeholders. We document the translation of social scientific findings into technical expertise for the design of a monitoring system. We discuss how the interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary process has affected the technology development. In outlining how this process was set up, carried out and validated, we are able to show a viable route for the meaningful incorporation of heterogeneous knowledge in complex energy infrastructures. Furthermore, we discuss the features of the project organization that made this comprehensive process possible. Thus, our results contribute to inter- and transdisciplinary research organization in general and to the development of methods for monitoring CO2 storage in particular.publishedVersio