Durham Energy Institute

27/05/2026

🌍 What a fantastic session for our final session of the DEI Research Forum 2026 — Decarbonising the Built Environment, chaired by Dr Claire Copeland!

We were delighted to hear from an incredible interdisciplinary lineup of speakers:

🔬 Jeroen van Hunen — Professor in Earth Sciences

💻 Alessandro Giampieri — PDRA, Department of Computer Sciences

📚 Adrian Green — Associate Professor, Department of History

⚙️ Huashan Bao — Associate Professor, Department of Engineering

From deep Earth science to computing, history to engineering — this session proved that tackling the climate challenge takes every discipline at the table. 💡🏗️

27/05/2026

Great to continue the DEI Research Forum 2026 with today’s session on “Just Transitions and Energy Finance” ⚖️💰

A thought-provoking discussion chaired by Dr Kim Bouwer, bringing together speakers from across Law, Anthropology and Economics:

• Adebola Adeyeye – Assistant Professor, Durham Law School
• Ben Campbell – Professor in Department of Anthropology
• Laura Marsiliani – Professor in Department of Economics

The session explored critical ideas around just transitions, finance, and the social and economic dimensions of energy futures — sparking rich interdisciplinary dialogue.

Another fantastic contribution to the forum!

27/05/2026

Great to continue the DEI Research Forum 2026 with today’s session on “AI, Data and Energy” 💻⚡💡

A fantastic discussion chaired by Dr Alessandro Giampieri, bringing together speakers from Engineering:

• Behzad Kazemtabrizi – Associate Professor, Department of Engineering
• Qian Zhang – Assistant Professor in Engineering and Project Management
• Jennifer Wilson – DEI CDT Student, Department of Engineering
• Jinjie Liu – PDRA, Department of Engineering
• Mahmoud Shahbazi – Associate Professor in Electrical Engineering

The session explored the exciting intersections of AI, data and energy — highlighting innovation, challenges and future opportunities in this rapidly evolving field.

A really engaging and thought-provoking part of the forum!

27/05/2026

Great to see the DEI Research Forum 2026 come together around the theme “Framing Energy Futures.”

The session brought together speakers from anthropology, earth sciences and engineering to explore ideas around energy, sustainability and the future. It was a thought-provoking discussion and a valuable part of the forum.

27/05/2026

Great to kick off the DEI Annual Research Forum 2026 with the first session, Energy and the Ocean 🛳️🌊

A brilliant session featuring four insightful speakers - Dawei Wu, Soheil Navvabi, Joel Lozano Perez and Olivia Woolley - each bringing a fresh perspective on the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of ocean energy.

It was a fantastic start to a day of interdisciplinary discussion, collaboration and ideas.

27/05/2026

DEI Executive Director Professor Simone Abram opening our inaugural Fellows Conference today at our new event space at the Mountjoy Centre.

24/05/2026

❎ Drilling for oil and gas will not reduce bills or deliver energy security. Here’s why ❎

A new article by Professor Gavin Bridge, DEI Fellow and Professor of Economic Geography at Durham University, has been published by the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC), offering timely analysis of UK energy policy debates. In the piece, Professor Bridge examines claims that expanding oil and gas drilling in the North Sea would reduce household energy bills or strengthen the UK’s energy security — and finds that these arguments do not stand up to scrutiny.

The analysis shows that UK energy prices are shaped by international markets rather than domestic production levels, meaning that increased drilling would have little impact on costs for consumers. Professor Bridge argues instead that demand reduction and accelerated transition away from fossil fuels are central to building long term energy security. The article contributes important evidence based insight to ongoing public and policy discussions around the UK’s energy future.

Read the full article now - link in Linktree/bio 🔗

24/05/2026

20/05/2026

11/05/2026

🎨⚡ 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗲𝘅𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗼𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽.

Stronger Seams: Beyond Coal, a collaboration between the East Durham Artists Network (EDAN) and our very own Durham Energy Institute, is now open at the EDAN Gallery in Seaham, running until 6 June 2026.

Inspired by the Durham Miners' Association "The past we inherit, the future we build", local artists have woven together the region's deep coal mining heritage with urgent questions about today's energy transition. Are wind farms and solar installations truly delivering prosperity to the communities that once powered the nation? What does "energy" really mean, beyond fuel and electricity?

This exhibition doesn't shy away from the hard questions. It celebrates the social and cultural strength of mining communities, honours the vital role of women within them, and asks what kind of future East Durham wants to build.

We're proud to have been part of bringing this to life. 🖤

📍 EDAN Gallery, Church Street, Seaham
🗓️ Open Tuesday–Saturday, 11:00–15:00, until 6 June 2026

Read the full story 👇

A new exhibition opening this week at the East Durham Artists' Network (EDAN) Gallery in Seaham marks an unlikely but richly productive partnership between community artists and academic researchers, one that began with a shared document and grew into something far more expansive.