Energy saving talks and workshops

I have a range of talks and workshops on energy related topics. From this page you can download slides and supporting information for some of them - I usually adjust them each time depending on the time available and the audience so this may not be exactly what you have seen but it should be useful.

If you would like me to give a talk to your group then please let me know.

Seriously saving energy at home

This short talk explains the need to reduce energy use in the current crisis - even if you can afford not to - and gives tips for how to do it.

Download the slides here (3 Mb pdf).

Pathways to zero carbon home energy

Discusses the main options for how to convert from gas heating to zero carbon, and which might be best for different kinds of homes.

Download the slides here (3 Mb pdf).

Thermal Imaging

A short talk (15 minutes) about doing thermal imaging surveys with CCF - how they can help identify heat losses, how CCF organises it.

Download the slides here (3 Mb pdf).

Practical tips for reducing your carbon footprint

A short talk (20 minutes) to a church group on how to reduce your carbon footprint based on the main sectors: food, energy, transport, stuff we buy.

Download the slides here (15 Mb pdf).

Climate Change - and what we can do about it - for EFL students from Italy

This talk was for a group of young people from Italy learning English as a Foreign Language. They were challenged to come up with some plans for action on climate change. So this talk was to give them some ideas. The language school gave a donation to Cambridge Carbon Footprint as payment.

Download the slides here (55 Mb pdf).

Cosy Cambridge: Heating controls and energy meters

This was a collaborative effort with contributions from my friends Ann, Tom and especially Fab who contributed all the stuff on smart heating controls. I've always been a bit of a sceptic on high tech gadgets but it turns out some of the things that smart controls can do are genuinely useful. As for smart meters, I can't wait but I am waiting for the SMETS2 standard ones next year. In the meantime, I've been taking weekly meter readings and you can do quite a lot with them.

Download the slides here (5 Mb pdf).

Changing conversations on Transport

This is a brief overview of transport problems and solutions with a Cambridge focus written to introduce a Changing Conversations discussion on transport organised by the Cambridge Green Party. The purpose was to stimulate debate rather than provide answers.

Download the slides here.

Efficient Appliances

This short talk was given as part of Cosy Cambridge in October 2016. It is all about saving energy on appliances at home. It covers what to look for in energy rating certificates, options for measuring your electricity use and tips for energy saving including when to worry about standby power.

Download the slides here.

(U3A) Saving energy and carbon at home and in other buildings

This talk is part of an energy themed workshop for the U3A, given on April 7th 2016. It is an overview of how to save energy at home, from little things like using a washing line to dry clothes to big things like insulation or getting a new boiler. It discusses the value of audits and monitoring and the need for a plan. It has tips on reading energy efficiency ratings certificates for appliances. It also has a few slides on solar panels. Finally there are some suggestions for workshop discussions. There is an accompanying handout.

Download the slides here and the handout here.

Living with low and zero carbon technologies

So you now have a heat pump, or a solar panel. Maybe you didn't even choose it - you've just moved into a new home that has it. So what is it supposed to do? How do you know it is working? What should you be doing or not doing? Should it really be making that noise? This very short presentation is based on my online guides. I can easily expand it.

Download the slides here.

Energy Efficiency in Homes and Community Buildings

This EEBE Workshop is aimed particularly for community groups aiming to improve energy efficiency in building of all types: dwellings, schools, other community buildings and any other buildings where energy is used. The EEBE research at Cambridge University identified an energy efficiency gap, whereby opportunities to save energy are not being taken because of difficulties of various kinds – the workshop discusses these difficulties and how to get around them.

You can download the slides and resources from the EEBE website

Energy saving at no extra cost - tips and tricks around the home

This workshop is about saving energy in the home without spending any money at all - just from the things we do or don't do around the home. It discusses actions we can take and how much difference they make. It also discusses what makes some actions hard to do and what might make them easier.

Download the slides here.

Saving energy at home

This talk is about what you can do to save energy around the house in many different ways - from big things like insulation to small things like filling the kettle with just the water you need.

Download the slides here and some additional resources here.

Making the most of your PV panels

This talk is about how to get most benefit from your PV panels. It discusses how you can adjust your energy use to use energy when the panels are generating and other ways such as using spare energy to heat your hot water tank or storing the energy in batteries to use later.

Download the slides here.

Myths and Surprises

This is a presentation about some of the most interesting and surprising things I found while researching my book. I first gave this talk as part of 'Soapbox in the Pub' at the Maypole in Feb 2011 but it has evolved a bit since then.

See the slides here