It was an interesting journey to get here. April 22-25, 2024 seemed so far away when I first reached out to Rotterdam Partners to see how Erasmus University Rotterdam could get involved in #WEC2024. Very proud of what the team was able to organize leading up to this centennial event. 🎉
So lovely to work with you Margriet Tutuhatunewa - Jansen, Dena Dijkstra, Marianne Bego, Brennus van Os van den Abeelen, Dagmar Jónasdóttir, Cassie Sale, Avicia Burchill, Damilola Adeyanju, Douwe van der Stroom, Ivo Wakounig.
To the Erasmus Centre for Energy Transition team thank you for all your support in leading up to the event including all the very last minute requests. Malou Kroezen, Marcel Van Oosterhout, Doron Gollnast, PhD, Jagoda Albin, Aryana Desai, and to #ECDA for all your support on branding. Marta Stachowiak-de Wit and Monika Olbrycht.
⚡️So many great takeaways over the 4 days but my favourites are:
☑️ Our society is built with steel, cement, ammonia and plastics. How do we continue modernizing and urbanizing with the urgent need to decarbonize, while seeking alternatives to these foundational materials?
Jacqueline Chinwe Stephen
☑️ EV cars require you to drive a minimum of 250,000 kilometres to be carbon neutral due to not being produced with carbon free steel and plastics. EV batteries weigh around 454 kg and some even up to 1,800 kg, 30% heavier than a gas powered car. In the Netherlands, Germany and France most EV’s are powered by green nuclear energy however with all these plants closing and limited alternatives, most will be powered by coal fired electricity. 😱
Wouter van Dieren
☑️ we need to redefine and reclaim the phrase '#energytransition', it has become one of the most frequently-used, politically-loaded and polarizing phrases of recent years. It is also a source of confusion and misunderstanding. For many people energy and electricity are synonymous… Energy leadership has done a lousy job of energy literacy in recent decades.
The uncomfortable news is that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. No quick and easy fix. Complex coordination challenges cannot be ignored or resolved, even with AI or other technology innovations. Success depends on the capabilities of whole societies to manage energy in a new era of globally inclusive, climate-resilient, sustainable development.
Angela Wilkinson
We have a lot of work to do on the energy transition literacy and education for ALL. I accept this challenge and want to contribute and support education and research through the Erasmus Centre for Energy Transition!
![View organization page for Erasmus Centre for Energy Transition, graphic]()
What a week at the 26th World Energy Congress 2024 at Rotterdam Ahoy. The Erasmus Centre for Energy Transition team has been working with various stakeholders for a year including Port of Rotterdam, City of Rotterdam, Rotterdam Partners, Platform Zero and MCI The Netherlands to bring to life the Rotterdam pavilion and the Rotterdam: Gateway to the Energy Transition theatre program.
We supported bringing faculty from Netherlands Universities to the congress main stages, the Rotterdam theatre with experts in innovation and science, hosted several side events, and welcomed Ministers, CEO's and foreign delegates from all over the world to our University Hub. Lastly, we gave away over 150 exhibition passes and 30 congress delegation passes to students, faculty and staff from Erasmus University Rotterdam. Very happy to see so many students walking around the event and making the most of the sessions.
Thank you to Angela Wilkinson, Rob Jetten, Sarah Craig, Dagmar Jónasdóttir, Avicia Burchill, Cassie Sale, Jeroen van Hoof, Aad Groenenboom, Future Energy Leaders The Netherlands, World Energy Council Netherlands, and World Energy Council for the support and including the academic voice in this important congress.
Thank you to Rabobank for making our University Hub possible, our stand was large enough to invite Delft University of Technology, Hogeschool Rotterdam, Erasmus Centre for Data Analytics, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship, Erasmus UPT, Erasmus Centre for Women and Organisations (ECWO), Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. Together we presented showcases on how several academic institutions and impact center's can support the acceleration of the Energy Transitions locally and globally.
"At the center of these energy transitions needs to be people and community. While balancing urgency, equity, and agency, navigating these challenges and disparities in climate finance and the new era of geopolitics." Angela Wilkinson
#WEC500, #WEC2024, #EnergyTransition
