LEAFcast: Recent Episodes
Brenda Dayne
Community energy generation is hard. There. We said it.
And you know, we're glad we said it, because there is really no point in sugarcoating it. You have to know these things going in. Community energy is hard, and it takes a really long time.
How we get there, on the other hand, is actually quite easy to explain, and that's what we do in this podcast. Step by step. One foot after the other. And when there's something we don't know how to explain, we find someone who does know, and let them explain it better than we can.
LEAFcast is a podcast about how a band of plucky optimists are making community energy projects happen in our small corner of west Wales. It's still very hard, mind, even when you know how. But we're hoping we can make it a little less hard for you.
Many thanks to Jess Hooper, of Marine Energy Wales (MEW), for taking time to chat about marine and tidal energy, and the exciting projects happening in Wales. Download the State of the Sector Report, or read about their Coastal Curriculum, and check out their impressive projects page to discover more about their work.
Thanks to the Time and Tide Bell Project for allowing me to use the lovely sounds of the Trinity Buoy Wharf bell that hangs above the Thames in London.
Keep tabs on Donkeyhill Transistion Group's solar PV project at Llanteg Park.
In this episode, LEAFcast chats with sustainable building technologies expert, Peter Draper. Peter's experience in the industry, working with community organisations and development groups across Wales, to provide sustainable building expertise on a wide variety of construction projects, spans twenty-five years.
Peter is the co-director of the Sustainable Traditional Buildings Alliance, and has worked as an advisor within government to change the landscape of retrofitting advice in the UK. He was part of the Welsh Government’s infrastructure decarbonisation group, and was an advocate for community involvement in the process of achieving net zero carbon in Britain. He has also advised on retrofitting of the Welsh housing stock, and in particular social housing.
Peter is coordinator of Rounded Development Enterprises (RDE), a firm in Cardiff providing consultancy, training and advice on sustainable building technologies and methodology. He’s also a mentor and coordinator for Renew Wales, helping community groups to address sustainability in the buildings under their care.
In this episode, Peter Draper shares his philosophy on retrofitting for long term sustainability, which begins with a thorough understanding of the type of home in which you live.