Finding a balance on energy

20th July 2022


Hello, and welcome to another edition of Transform magazine.

This summer has seen another set of weather records broken around the world, whether for heat in Europe and the US, or rain

in Australia. While the hot weather brings many challenges, not least in keeping vulnerable people cool and comfortable, politicians and energy providers in Europe are becoming increasingly concerned about energy supply in the autumn and winter. The war in Ukraine, and the subsequent deterioration of relations between Russia and its western neighbours, means that European leaders might need to build new capacity in record time.

It’s an opportunity for renewable energy – but can you balance security of supply with the sort of cross-border networks needed to make the most of energy from the sun and wind? Chris Seekings finds out on page 28.

The increased construction costs caused by the current energy crisis might also be an opportunity for organisations to move towards a circular economy. However, implementation of circular processes is not without its challenges – for example, around transparency. Might digital product passports be a solution? Aoife O’Donnell and Ellie Walshe consider the pros and cons on page 32.

As more and more companies start to investigate a business path to sustainability, there are increasing accusations of ‘greenwashing’ from activists and commentators. Indeed, the outgoing chair of the Environment Agency warned businesses against this in a recent intervention. On page 22, Huw Morris ponders whether businesses are talking about, but not walking towards, genuine sustainability.

I hope you enjoy this edition as much as I have. As always, please do keep your ideas and comments coming in – we love to hear from members about what articles they love, and what they would like to see more of.

In the meantime, have a productive couple of months, and see you soon.

“Can you balance security of energy supply with the sort of cross-border networks needed to make the most of energy from the sun and wind?”

Subscribe

Subscribe to IEMA's newsletters to receive timely articles, expert opinions, event announcements, and much more, directly in your inbox.


Transform articles

Information overload: the difficulty with data

The huge quantities of data we generate online every day is having an increasingly negative impact on the environment. Chris Seekings examines what is being done to tackle the problem

30th November 2023

Read more

The Labour Party’s climate policy team took part in a panel discussion with IEMA representatives at Westminster this morning, outlining what they plan to do should they win the next general election.

29th November 2023

Read more

The UK’s renewables industry is being used to extend the life of the sector that is driving us towards climate breakdown. Tom Pashby reports

28th November 2023

Read more

The UK government will introduce a new bill requiring the North Sea Transition Authority to run oil and gas licensing rounds every year, the King’s Speech confirmed today.

7th November 2023

Read more

A vastly different energy system is set to emerge by the end of this decade, with almost 10 times as many electric cars on roads, and solar panels generating more electricity than the entire US power system does today.

24th October 2023

Read more

IEMA CEO Sarah Mukherjee MBE talks to Rachel Kyte about diplomacy, women’s leadership, diversity and transforming energy systems

28th September 2023

Read more

Rick Gould looks at the options for decarbonising cement

28th September 2023

Read more

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has this week granted permission for drilling at the controversial Rosebank oil and gas field located 80 miles north-west of Shetland.

28th September 2023

Read more

Media enquires

Looking for an expert to speak at an event or comment on an item in the news?

Find an expert

IEMA Cookie Notice

Clicking the ‘Accept all’ button means you are accepting analytics and third-party cookies. Our website uses necessary cookies which are required in order to make our website work. In addition to these, we use analytics and third-party cookies to optimise site functionality and give you the best possible experience. To control which cookies are set, click ‘Settings’. To learn more about cookies, how we use them on our website and how to change your cookie settings please view our cookie policy.

Manage cookie settings

Our use of cookies

You can learn more detailed information in our cookie policy.

Some cookies are essential, but non-essential cookies help us to improve the experience on our site by providing insights into how the site is being used. To maintain privacy management, this relies on cookie identifiers. Resetting or deleting your browser cookies will reset these preferences.

Essential cookies

These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website.

Analytics cookies

These cookies allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors to our website and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works.

Advertising cookies

These cookies allow us to tailor advertising to you based on your interests. If you do not accept these cookies, you will still see adverts, but these will be more generic.

Save and close