Subject: Beginners guide to retrofit, new Carbon Co-op jobs, heat pumps and more! 🍃

Carbon Co-op are hiring!

Hi Friend,

As we roll into September and colder weather might be on the horizon, members of our community are considering how best to reduce their carbon emissions during the forthcoming heating season.

Whether it is time to take advantage of our members' tool library, or book on to the Radical Energy Savings: A Beginner's Guide to Home Retrofit event, there are many different things you can do to progress your home energy savings.

There is also a new role at Carbon Co-op for a Comms & Policy officer which will be closing later this week. So if this role speaks to you, then now is the time to send your application in!

Now hiring: Comms & Policy Officer

An illustration of an eco-community with solar, heat pump, wind power and electric vehicles

Carbon Co-op is seeking a Communications and Policy Officer to create compelling new stories and narratives concerning the power of collective solutions to tackle climate change, the urgent need to establish Energy Justice and the transformative power of open technologies. You don’t need to be an expert in the field but you will be passionate about working with team members to communicate sometimes complex social and technical issues in ways that are simple, direct and accessible to people from a range of backgrounds.

Apply by 5pm, Friday 8th September.

Apply now

Radical Energy Savings: A Beginner's Guide to Home Retrofit

A photo of the outside of a semi detached house with partially fitted external wall insulation.

Are you interested in making your home more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly?

Taking place at Hebden Bridge Town Hall, led by Carbon Co-op retrofit expert, Aneaka Kellay, this introductory session will explore the basic ideas and concepts of retrofitting, helping you understand how you can reduce energy bills, improve your property, and make your home more energy efficient and more comfortable.

We will also start a conversation on how we can best support each other as a community, starting by asking you about your interest in a series of practical "How-to-Retrofit" workshops, focusing specifically on solutions that work with local housing stock.

This workshop is useful for householders, housing association staff, housing co-ops, and landlords who are interested in learning more about energy efficiency and domestic retrofitting. No prior knowledge is required.

EcoHome Lab: Viability of battery storage without PV

A diagram of the the home and battery energy storage

While self generation is the obvious choice for people wanting to reduce their impact domestically as well improve their energy costs and security it is not an option in all homes. What is the benefit of adding a battery and inverter system to a home without solar PV? With the increased availability of flexible energy tariffs there is the potential to make significant savings on electricity bills. We are interested whether financial savings can offset the initial capital outlay and whether storing less carbon intensive energy is sufficient to offset losses and embedded carbon.

The workshop will be taking place on Thursday 14 September, 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm.

Automating heat pump demand: Findings from the HeatFlex UK pilot

A graphic with the text 'Zero Carbon Calderdale'.

The UK’s home heating landscape is dominated by gas boilers, which are responsible for around 14% of our national carbon emissions. To decarbonise the UK and reach net zero, households will need to transition to low-carbon alternatives such as heat pumps – but without intelligent design and rollout, the electrification of heat can increase the demand on the grid, particularly at peak times, costing billions in future upgrade costs over the coming decades.

In an upcoming report from Nesta and the Centre for Net Zero, they will explore results from a pilot project designed to test the potential of automation in unlocking heat pump flexibility, shifting electricity demand away from peak times. To mark the launch of the report, they’re gathering experts from the green energy sector on Tuesday 12 September from 12:00-13:15 GMT to explore their findings and share their plans to implement a larger-scale trial in Winter 2023-24.

What we are reading...

Plugged In: Strengthening Energy Advice and Support for Gypsies, Travellers, Roma and Nomadic Communities

Gypsies, Travellers, Roma and Nomadic Communities (GTRNCs) are consumer groups that have been historically overlooked, under-served by policy, and under-researched. Yet, evidence tells us that these different communities, while not homogenous, have shared poor experiences as energy consumers. They experience manifold vulnerabilities. They are also at heightened risk of harm.

Read the full report