UCD Hosts National Workshop for Higher Education Sustainable Energy Communities
On Friday, 30 May 2025, the UCD Sustainable Energy Community (SEC) welcomed representatives from across Ireland’s Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) for a dynamic meeting of SECs. The workshop brought together sustainability leaders, researchers, and practitioners to share insights, experiences, and strategies for advancing energy sustainability on campuses and beyond.
The workshop, moderated by SEC co-chair Paula Carroll, featured an engaging keynote from Lúgh Ó Braonáin, Research Director at Energy Cooperatives Ireland, who explored the evolving role of energy communities in Ireland—highlighting both the challenges they face and the promising opportunities ahead.
A diverse panel of HEI representatives shared updates on their institutions’ SEC journeys and energy initiatives:
Mel Gavin (Atlantic Technological University)
Samantha Fahy (Dublin City University)
Jeremy Auerbach & Istenc Tarhan (University College Dublin)
Richard Manton (University of Galway, via report)
Rosie Webb (Technological University Dublin)
The workshop sparked a thought-provoking discussion around the challenges of shifting away from traditional "Business As Usual" energy practices in the higher education sector. Attendees emphasised the importance of HEIs serving as leaders in decarbonisation, in line with Ireland’s Climate Action Plan, and discussed how energy efficiency efforts should be understood within the wider context of sustainability goals.
Participants explored how HEIs can act as incubators for Sustainable Energy Communities—helping them mature into Renewable Energy Communities. Opportunities were also identified for deeper collaboration, including data sharing, expertise pooling, and the formation of a Common Alliance to support sector-wide progress.
Importantly, the role of students in driving change was a recurring theme. Attendees agreed that there is huge potential to engage students in SEC-related projects—leveraging their social networks and offering digital badges for volunteer contributions to the clean energy transition.
The meetup demonstrated the power of shared learning and collaboration in building a more sustainable, energy-conscious future across Ireland’s HEIs. UCD’s SEC was proud to host and support this vital step forward.
HEI Sustainable Energy Community Meetup
When: 30 May 10:00-13:00
Where: Q233, UCD School of Business, Belfield, Dublin 4 and online
Register for the Zoom link: (opens in a new window)https://forms.gle/q8pqY8XXrNoYfNcG7
Following a successful workshop in May 2024 of Sustainable Energy Communities (SECs) in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), we invite you to join us, either online or in person in UCD, for a follow up workshop. You'll find a summary of the 2024 workshop discussions below. We found the HEI SECs had very different focuses, objectives, and target communities. In this workshop we aim to explore the progress of the HEI SECs and sustainable energy units, and to identify opportunities for collaboration and mutual shared learning between the HEI SECs/sustainable energy units.
HEI SEC 2025 Workshop Objectives
- To understand the HEI SEC objectives, who the target community is and their needs
- To identify shared learnings and good practices to support the target community
Programme
- Welcome and Introductions (Paula Carroll, 5 minutes)
- Perspectives from Energy Co-Ops Ireland (Lúgh Ó Braonáin, Research Director, Energy Co-operatives Ireland, 15 minutes)
- Updates from the HEI SECs and Sustainable Energy Units:
- Atlantic Technological University (Mel Gavin, 10 minutes)
- Dublin City University (Samantha Fahy, 10 minutes)
- University College Dublin (Jeremy Auerbach and Istenc Tarhan, 10 minutes)
- Coffee break (5-10 minutes)
- University of Galway (Richard Morton, 10 minutes)
- Technological University Dublin (Rosie Webb, 10 minutes)
- Moderated Discussion (Paula Carroll, 20 minutes)
- Wrap-up (Rapporteur, 5 minutes)
- Lunch and networking
UCD Teams Shine in EirGrid CleanerGrid 2025 Competition
The UCD SEC is thrilled to celebrate the outstanding achievements of our students in the EirGrid CleanerGrid 2025 Competition. The competition was fierce with an impressive 170 entries this year, but three UCD teams showcased their creativity and innovation in developing sustainable energy solutions.
A special congratulations to Todhchaí Glas (Green Future), who secured first place with their ground-breaking proposal on pumped hydropower storage!
First Place: Todhchaí Glas – How Pumped Hydropower Storage Can Solve Energy Intermittency
Team Members: Eoin O’Duffy, Stephen Murphy, and Ruairí Collins (pictured)
One of the biggest hurdles in transitioning to a fully renewable energy grid is intermittency—the challenge of maintaining a consistent power supply from variable sources like wind and solar. The Todhchaí Glas team presented a compelling solution: a network of pumped hydropower storage facilities across Ireland.
Currently, Ireland has only one pumped hydro plant—Turlough Hill in Co. Wicklow, operational since 1974. Due to high construction costs (€500 million - €1.5 billion), no further facilities have been developed. The team proposes innovative financing through public-private partnerships and economic incentives to drive investment in long-duration energy storage. They believe that pumped hydropower storage will be the key enabler of a fully renewable energy grid and Ireland’s net-zero 2050 goals.
Sustainable Pioneers – Revolutionizing Urban Mobility with Cycle-to-Grid (C2G)
Team Members: Sze Kei To, Jia Dong Cher, and Natrajabishek Narasimhan Devasena
The Sustainable Pioneers are tackling urban emissions and energy decentralisation with their Cycle-to-Grid (C2G) initiative. This innovative concept integrates cycling infrastructure with the electricity grid, allowing urban commuters to contribute clean energy while promoting sustainable transport. Their model incentivises individual participation, offering a seamless way to power a greener, smarter future.
Team Power Rangers – AI-Powered Wind Energy Management System (WEMS)
Team Members: Yue Han, Xinyi Liu, Fuyu Cai, Ming Tu
Wind energy curtailment—when excess wind power is wasted due to grid limitations—is a major issue in Ireland’s renewable energy transition. Team Power Rangers introduced WEMS (Wind Energy Management System), an AI-powered tool that leverages real-time forecasting and smart dispatch to optimise wind energy usage. Their solution improves grid efficiency and ensures a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.
Celebrating Innovation and Sustainability
UCD SEC co-chair Paula Carroll (pictured) played a pivotal role in mentoring these teams, guiding them to refine their ideas and push the boundaries of sustainable energy solutions.
We are incredibly proud of our students’ success and their contributions towards a cleaner, greener future. Congratulations to all participants, and especially to Todhchaí Glas for their well-deserved first-place win!
SEC's Energy Hack Ignites Green Week with Sustainable Solutions
UCD is committed to becoming a net-zero organisation by 2040, leading the charge in sustainability to combat climate change. This commitment is showcased annually during Green Week, a vibrant series of events promoting sustainable practices across campus.
This year's Green Week, held from March 3rd to 6th, was buzzing with activities designed to foster collaboration and learning for a more sustainable future. A highlight was the UCD Sustainable Energy Community's (SEC) Energy Hack event. Held in UCD Village with support from UCD Estates, this event was a fantastic opportunity to ignite awareness and participation in sustainable energy practices among the UCD community.
The Energy Hack was a resounding success, attracting a diverse crowd of sustainability enthusiasts from within UCD and beyond, including visitors from other SECs in the local area. Attendees explored twenty insightful posters and as well as engaging exhibitions from leading Irish solar, heat pump, and wind associations. A demonstration of the (opens in a new window)UCD Energy Cost Calculator from our (opens in a new window)NexSys project partner also drew significant interest.
More than just a showcase of cutting-edge energy research, the event fostered dynamic discussions and interactions on energy sustainability issues. It brought together students, employees, alumni, members of other local SECs and industry partners, truly embodying the SEC's goal of building a broad and engaged community around sustainable energy.
The full report on the SEC's Green Week Energy Hack event is available here.
We're thrilled with the energy and engagement generated by the Energy Hack and look forward to building on this momentum as we continue our journey towards a sustainable future!
Green Week 2025 Energy Hack
Lab energy efficiency project
Did you know that research labs are some of the biggest energy users in universities?
Equipment like refrigerators and freezers run 24/7, consuming a huge amount of power. This project is all about finding smarter, more efficient ways to use cooling equipment in UCD labs.
While there are challenges—like strict technical standards and regulations—there’s also a big opportunity to cut energy waste, save money, and reduce carbon emissions.
By analysing energy usage patterns and exploring solutions like dynamic power management, we aim to make lab cooling more efficient and sustainable.
Green Week Energy Hack
Green Week 2025 is here!
Join us from Monday 3 March to Friday 7 March as we celebrate UCD's commitment to sustainability and environmental initiatives.
Don't miss the Energy Hack, an Energy Awareness event hosted by the UCD Sustainable Energy Community on Tuesday, 4 March, from 10:00AM to 12:00PM in UCD Village.
Discover cutting-edge UCD research on energy communities, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, energy storage, the just transition, energy markets, heat pumps, and offshore wind. Learn how these innovations are shaping Ireland's clean energy future - whether it's fostering local energy cooperatives, advancing battery technology, integrating renewables into the grid, or ensuring a fair and inclusive transition to a low-carbon economy.
Meet special guest partners including (opens in a new window)Wind Energy Ireland, the (opens in a new window)Irish Solar Energy Association and the (opens in a new window)Heat Pump Association of Ireland. Plus, take on the (opens in a new window)Pedal Bike Energy Challenge - can you power up with your own energy?
View our Energy Hack poster here.
Get involved, get inspired, and go green!
An Uber-Sustainable Energy Community for Higher Education in Ireland?
Sustainability has become an integral part of third-level education and training. As well as an explosion in sustainability and related degrees and modules, students and staff across campuses are often keen to reduce waste and carbon emissions.
Many Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are now making sustainability a priority both in policy and practice, with initiatives such as plastic-free campuses and local clean energy schemes in the form of heat pumps and solar panels.
So, can HEIs in Ireland work together to have even more impact on energy sustainability? That’s what representatives from around Ireland set out to discuss at a recent gathering in May 2024.
The meeting, hosted by University College Dublin’s Sustainable Energy Community (SEC), welcomed representatives from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and its mentor network, the EU-funded AURORA project and HEIs including Atlantic Technological University (ATU - Galway, Mayo and Sligo), Dublin City University (DCU), Technological University of Dublin (TU Dublin), University of Galway (UG) and UCD.
Sustainable Energy Communities (SECs) are an initiative of the SEAI that look to engage and enable energy citizens to work together to achieve their energy goals. One of the key topics up for discussion at the UCD workshop was whether and how HEIs in Ireland should pool resources and approaches and build such a community.
The meeting heard from individual institutions about their current practices and challenges, where local SECs seek to lead the energy transition in their locality, in some cases through an active leadership role and demonstrating energy efficiency and emission reduction in action.
Martin Brocklehurst spoke about the EU-funded (opens in a new window)AURORA project, which empowers several thousand citizens across five locations in Denmark, England, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain to make more informed energy decisions.
One of the key messages from the meeting was that HEIs have a significant opportunity to reach many students and staff now and impact their behaviours into the future. HEIs also offer an environment for mixing research and education for energy sustainability, for example through ‘living labs’.
The discussion highlighted that HEI’s face some similar challenges around sustainable energy and can so share best practice, though each locality may have its own nuances and opportunities for positive change.
Given the diversity of approaches taken by the HEIs, further thought is needed on whether a Community of Common Interest could be beneficial, or if a looser network of HEI SECs would be more useful.
Next year will see another workshop to map communalities and share progress.
You can read the full report here.
In February 2024, Paula Carroll (UCD College of Business) gave a UCD Earth Institute coffee morning research talk on Sustainable Energy Communities: UCD leading (lighting?) the way.
Abstract: EU citizens are anticipated to play a central role in the future EU clean energy system. Community groups will engage in renewable energy generation, and energy sharing or trading, storage, or supply. Ireland’s community energy sector is at an early stage of development. The Commission for Regulation of Utilities is adapting the regulatory framework, and “Sustainable Energy Communities” are proposed by the SEAI as a stepping stone to engage citizens. In this talk Paula Carroll highlighted SEC-OREA (Supporting Energy Communities - Operations Research and Energy Analytics), an IRC funded CHIST-ERA project.