KTH Energy Platform to hold several events in the autumn to build more bridges to better dialogue

Hi there Lina! As KTH Energy Platform Director, your summer has included a series of conferences and meetings. In June, you participated in the government’s high-profile climate summit. You also co-wrote an op-ed  (article in Swedish) for the Swedish business daily Dagens Industri (DI) in the run-up to the conference, emphasising the urgency of rapid climate action. What were your impressions from the conference?

“You can criticise the fact that more organisations and companies, and more researchers from academia in particular, were not invited to participate. Having said that, there was plenty of time for questions after each of the four panel discussions. This was when I took the opportunity to stress the importance of having an international perspective in the ongoing energy debate. 

“What struck me most was how so many people gathered outside [the conference venue] to make their voices heard. I wish they’d been given more of an opportunity to participate. My contribution to improving the discussion and reducing polarisation, was to talk to some of the protestors and to invite them to KTH to deepen my own understanding of their opinions and to build more bridges to better dialogue. A knowledge-based dialogue, held on an open and inclusive platform, is the only way to create sustainable change.” 

Almedalen Week was held in the summer as usual, during which you participated in several panels and events as a representative of KTH Energy Platform. What were your key takeaways from the week?

“The most significant thing that happened from an energy perspective was Vattenfall’s involvement in the roadmap for the electricity system . Among other things, they spoke about the need for a national nuclear power programme to expand the use of nuclear power on a competitive basis. DI’s Energy Day also included several interesting entries and contributors to the debate. Recordings from the Energy Day are available here ”

“I also took part in an inspirational panel discussion focusing on the possibilities of digitalisation and power grids, including with the help of AI, which was organised by Telia, Ericsson and Ellevio. This is an area where we have conducted research for more than a decade and where new technical solutions are now being put into practice. The call can be listened to afterwards .” 

For the research community, the summer period is an opportunity to be inspired by others and increase the exchange of ideas and knowledge. You visited the IEEE Power & Energy Society General Meeting in Orlando in the US, for example. But also a conference in Rome, CIRED , which brings together industry and academic experts on electricity distribution networks from around the world.

“It’s important to make the most of opportunities to meet in different settings to acquire knowledge and make more international contacts. In general, my impression is that we’re in a leading position in Europe - where there are a number of examples of the successful electrification of society using new methods and technologies. 

“This is also clear when we look at Ruth Graham´s research  on the world’s most successful universities. She visited KTH  at the end of the summer, and showed how universities in Europe and Asia are leading development, and how African universities are gaining ground. This underlines the importance of working more internationally to achieve the highest quality in our research.”

KTH Energy Platform has several exciting events planned for the autumn. Tell us more about some of them!

“Well, on September 14th, we’re hosting a workshop together with the KTH Digitalisation Platform under the title Data-driven methods with energy applications . We’ve invited several top international researchers to the event to create a truly unique opportunity to share details of the latest advances in AI and energy applications. In addition to researchers, representatives from several companies will also be participating so that we can all learn together.

“And then I’ll be looking forward to our annual KTH Energy Dialogue  conference on November 30th. This year’s theme is Security and Resilience. During the conference, academics, business representatives and decision-makers will come together to identify new ways to address the challenges associated with the sustainable transformation of urban energy systems.

“I also want to take this opportunity to highlight one of the events we held in spring  with the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences and the KTH Materials Platform, during which we took a broad-based approach to the research that is underway to strengthen a sustainable energy transition. And I would like to mention that we are planning an event in October organised jointly with the French Embassy focusing on nuclear power.”

Now the autumn term is in full swing and one of the first events you participated in was the inauguration of Dardel, the fastest and largest supercomputer in Sweden. What is the significance of this step for energy-related research?

“With the help of the new supercomputer at KTH’s PDC Center for High Performance Computing, we have the opportunity to conduct the increasingly complex calculations and simulations that are needed in energy research. Meeting PDC researcher Niclas Jansson who was nominated for the ACM Gordon Bell Prize - known as a Nobel Prize for supercomputing - was also very inspiring.

“Back in 2022, KTH Energy Platform could demonstrate Dardel for a group of MPs  together with the Society of Members of Parliament and Researchers (Rifo), and other researchers. ​​At the beginning of this summer, we welcomed yet another group of parliamentarians on a study visit to KTH and the Swedish Defense University , the aim of which was to provide the MPs with a greater understanding of cyber security together with Rifo.”

“I’d like to wish everyone an exciting and inspiring autumn packed with meetings where together we take important steps forward.”

Text: Magnus Trogen Pahlén