Who's got questions about energy?

If you could ask one question about energy production, consumption, distribution, what would that be?

1. How is the grid working?

2. Can I sell the energy I produce with my solar panels?

3. Which light bulbs are the most efficient?

4. How do I know I only get renewable energy?

5. Which gadgets help me reduce my electricity consumption?

Any other questions? Please let us know! :butterfly::smiley:

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Its question 4 I would mostly like to know about. Number 2 is also most interesting.
This points to a total independence (self-sufficiency and sharing with profit).

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Thanks, Stefania! Yep, number 4 is not an easy one as far as I know.

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I just saw this on Twitter:

ā€œThe wind and sun have their own timetables, making generation variable. Storage can ensure electricity is available, even when sunshine or breezes are not. There are two basic sources of small-scale storage: stand-alone batteries and electric vehicles. If they are used to enable more reliance on renewables, there will be substantial climate benefits.ā€ See the article here >> Project Drawdown

Thatā€™s another important question: What is Distributed Energy Storage? :thinking:

Most people donā€™t know about renewable energy storage and energy storage systems, but these solutions exist already, theyā€™re not science fiction.

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I would like to see in school and colleges something like a more ,applied, physics course, where young people learn how they can set up their solar panels, how to develop sustainable sources of energy at home or in their immediate environment. This can be present in the curriculum, almost like a must-have first aid type of teaching, leading to the survival of the species, which most certainly is! I think people are hooked & sucked into on the small screens, and do not interact enough with the macro environment, the rivers and lakes, the hills and shores, the seas and wind, etc

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Thatā€™s a great idea, some schools do this already. Not enough, true, but thereā€™s hope :slight_smile:

Repowering London for instance runs some training programmes aimed at 16-25 year olds. Solar panel making is part of the course :raised_hands:

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Thank you so much for this, itā€™s very useful!

Can I also ask a silly question about ethical energy companies? What would you say is the best thing to look out for when choosing one? Iā€™ve used Ecotricity before, and was happy with the service (though it took a very long time for them to do the switch, and when they did, we were left without energy for 2 days); Iā€™ve perused other websites too. Iā€™m wondering if there is a simpler way to make a decision.

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Hey Dana! I feel like any of the challenger companies who offer 100% renewable electricity (Ecotricity, Bulb, Good Energy) would be a good choice. In my personal experience Ecotricity had better customer support than Good Energy, but things may change very quickly in this respect (for better or worse). I heard great things about Bulb too! Please share with our community how things go with your research and switch. :pray:

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Thanks so much, Cata! Sadly, I couldnā€™t experiment with other clean energy companies, because I have top-up meters, and Ecotricity is the only one that caters to those. Bulb and Good Energy donā€™t offer that service at present. I did wonder if I missed out though :slight_smile: Will keep on searching. Will share, thank you!

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Ah good to know. :raised_hands:

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With the increasing advancement of nuclear technology, could this source of energy be considered for mass use?

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Some good news :slight_smile:

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Have you heard of Octopus ?
I even saw a poster in a bus stop, they advertise themselves as the green energy supplier par excellence.

Best,
Stefania