On the 26th and 27th of September 2024, I attended the "Next Generation Challenges in Energy and Climate Modelling" workshop hosted online by the University of Reading. The aim of this two-day event was to bring together researchers in the field of energy system modelling through engaging and interactive sessions.
The first afternoon kicked off with a series of expert talks. Julie Lundquist from Johns Hopkins University opened with a presentation on how climate impacts energy systems, focusing primarily on the United States. Next, Laurent Stoop from the Netherlands' Transmission System Operator (TSO), TenneT, presented models and decision-making tools that can be useful for TSOs in general. Afterward, Grant Buster from the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) gave a fascinating talk on the role of AI in climate and energy modelling. He also showcased a project at NREL that uses AI to search through a repository of documents and reports the lab has published. The final presentation came from Mathilde Ungerovich from Uruguay’s TSO (ADME), who discussed optimizing energy dispatch in Uruguay.
Following a brief Q&A with the presenters, we switched platforms from Zoom to Gather.town—a tool combining video calls with a 2D virtual environment for more interactive engagement. I’ve used Gather.town before, and I think it's great for webinars like this because it makes moving between conversations easy and natural. The switch was made because the second half of the day featured a poster session, where I had the opportunity to present my own research. I ended up discussing my work with around ten people from different universities, some of whom I had met earlier at EGU2024. I also had the chance to interact with researchers whose publications I’ve read, like Karin van der Wiel and Hannah Bloomfield. Tailoring my presentation to each person’s level of understanding was a bit tricky—some were new to the topic of renewable energy droughts, so I spent more time on the basics, while others were already familiar and focused more on the results. Overall, it was a rewarding experience with some great discussions.
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| The poster I presented |
The
second afternoon brought us back to Zoom for a series of six workshops
led by various researchers. I joined the session on “Methods for Climate
Effects in Energy System Models,” organized by Matteo de Felice and Leonard Göke.
This two-part workshop introduced us to the basics of energy and
climate system modelling using Python or Julia scripts. Matteo gave an
overview of energy system modelling, showing us how to create a simple
power network using PyPSA, a Python package. This was my first exposure
to this kind of work, and I found it both fascinating and potentially
useful for my PhD research. Leonard then introduced a more advanced
topic—using stochastic optimization in energy system modelling. This was
completely new to me, but it definitely piqued my interest.
Overall,
I found the workshop both insightful and engaging. What I appreciated
the most was the opportunity to connect with other researchers working
on similar topics. It was a great experience and I look forward to
continuing these collaborations in the future.
Boris
