January 2011 Top Experts To Debate the Future of Energy in Ireland at NUI Galway

Top experts from the fields of energy technology, policy, innovation and business will come together in NUI Galway on Wednesday, 26 January, 2011 to discuss the future of energy in Ireland. The Energy Night has been organised by the Chemistry, Energy and Physics Societies at NUI Galway. The NUI Galway Energy Night will open at 5:30pm in the Orbsen Building Foyer with a showcase of the rich and varied range of cutting-edge energy research currently underway at the University. With presenters working in areas from bio fuels to wave energy, and smart buildings to smart grids, the showcase will provide attendees and researchers alike with the opportunity to meet, learn and exchange ideas on the future of energy in Ireland. Following this, a major fact-based panel discussion entitled Averting a Future Irish Energy Crisis will be held at 7pm in the O Flaherty Lecture Theatre, located on the main Concourse. RTE's Environmental Editor Paul Cunningham will moderate the discussion. Panel participants include Professor J. Owen Lewis, Chief Executive of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), Paul Lynam, Chief Executive of Siemens Ireland, Emeritus Professor at the Combustion Chemistry Centre NUI Galway and acclaimed fuels researcher John Simmie, Neil Walker, Head of the Energy and Environment Unit at the Irish Business Employers Confederation (IBEC), and Philip Walton, Emeritus Professor of Physics at NUI Galway and nationally-renowned nuclear energy expert. NUI Galway Energy Night is an entirely student and postdoctoral organised event, being jointly undertaken by the Chemistry, Energy and Physics Societies at NUI Galway. This is the first time that a broad section of students have come together at NUI Galway or any other Irish University to organise such an event, and it reflects the seriousness with which the students regard the future of energy supply, demand, cost and security in Ireland. It is their hope that the NUI Galway Energy Night will be a spark that ignites enhanced understanding, interaction and collaboration between energy stakeholders in the policy, business, technological and academic spheres as well as the public. The event is made possible by the generosity of sponsors Enerit Ltd., the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET) and SEAI. The entire event is open to all members of the public. If you are interested in attending the panel discussion please email nuigenergy@gmail.com as space in the lecture theatre is limited. More information on NUI Galway Energy Night is available on the facebook page – NUIG Energy Night or by contacting Rory Monaghan at rory.monaghan@nuigalway.ie or 085 1509336 or http://sites.google.com/site/nuigenergynight2011/ -Ends-