Oh gooooood gosh!

Its Rose here, its been a little while since I last wrote and its a little while till something else too..

We have 40 hours and 7 minuets till the launch, everyone on the panel has worked over the last year towards this, and everyone that has contributed online, this is your climax!

In less than 40 hours it will come to a head, the report will be in hard copy and we will be rushing around various parts of the country and capital telling all sorts of people precisely what we think, what we've found and what they should do, as well as listening to what they have to say in response.

I haven't got too much to update you all on, but just know that this is the final 100m!!!!

As a panel member attending since the first pilot meeting on the 9th of febuary, I have seen how much work has been put in and I commend every member of the Panel.

I have enjoyed the last 12 months so much, and I cannot calm down in anticipation for Thursday...although equally, the day after will be just as nice..as will the future for the Panel, whatever that may hold, anyway, I'm off to try and focus enough to eat my dinner,

Thank you for reading and I'm sure we could well see some of you on Thursday!

Much love, the Climate Avengers**!

**Not yet an offical title :(

The Report

Pens are scribbling, fingers are typing as the panel gets ready for the launch of our report in time for the UN Climate Talks in Cancun...

In other news:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/nov/25/youth-activists-cancun-climate

Students Gather to 'Reclaim Our Future'

by Tom Youngman 

Shared Planet is an annual conference, run by student campaigning network, People & Planet, and is the largest of its kind in the UK. People & Planet are behind potent campaigns focusing on climate change and corporate power, translating into tangible success, especially with their 'Transition Unis' project, taking positive practical action to make university education more sustainability and their 'Green League', ranking universities by their level of sustainability. When the Youth Advisory Panel were invited to run a workshop at Shared Planet, we were therefore quick to take them up on the offer! We used the opportunity both to gain feedback on our work and to hear other points of view on the various topics covered in our upcoming report.

The conference was opened by leader of the Green Party, Caroline Lucas MP, who delivered a powerful speech covering many issues of interest to the Youth Panel. Of particular interest was her use of the phrase 'intergenerational fairness' - which is very similar, if less binding, to the phrase we have considered key during when carrying out our activities, 'intergenerational equity'. Her assertion that 'you can't have infinite economic growth on a finite planet' was a key theme throughout the conference. Other notable speakers included Nick Dearden of the Jubilee Debt Campaign, Amanda Starbuck of the Rainforest Action Network and Aaron Porter, NUS chairman, who featured on the conference's closing panel.

Click 'read more' for the full story! 

National Grid: UK Energy Distribution

Image from 'Pylon of the Month'

by Michael Furey
 
The National Grid UK is responsible for the transportation of energy (both gas and electricity) from different sources (such as power stations; wind farms; gas fields) to end users (e.g homes, schools, business). Conceptualised during the early 1920s, the electricity grid was built in 1926 to reduce electricity costs, and deliver this incredible resources to the masses.

The day predominantly focused on the national electricity grid, starting with a detailed breakdown of the ‘wiring’ layout which is found across the UK. The presentations then focused on the technical workings of the grid, specifically looking at the efforts undertaken to maintain adequate electricity supplies in the face of a highly variable demand profile. This in itself presents the largest hurdle for many emerging generating technologies (especially renewables) as periods when these sources may be most active are not necessarily at times when the highest demand is experienced. Put in layman’s terms, unlike a traditional power station, you can’t tell a wind farm to suddenly start generating more energy to ensure adequate electricity supply is available for the end of 'The X Factor' when people get up to make a cup of tea. The ability therefore to capture periods of abundant energy production from these sources, and smooth existing demand variability, will practicality determine the future of these energy sources. The 'smart grid' is the proposed solution to this - look out for a blog post about this soon.

Energy: how fair is it anyway?

Thanks to everyone for filling out the earlier Youth Panel survey back in July - the responses were great and helped inform the discussions we have had these last few months.

We have just released a new survey about energy and fairness - and we want you to tell us how fair you think energy production is. The information from this survey will help inform the youth panel's final discussion on energy.

This will all be written up in the youth panel final report that is submitted to the government! Please take 5 minutes to let us know what you think so that your voice can be heard. The link to the survey is here:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/youthpanel_energysurvey

If you'd like to easily share the survey with friends, use the short-url:
http://bit.ly/ourenergy

Thanks very much for sharing your thoughts!